The Big Four and the School for Witchcraft and Wizardry
by theohbm
Summary: Big Four Hogwarts AU. It all begins with four letters. From these letters four students of Hogwarts will meet and form a bond that is more significant than any of them could imagine. It is through this bond that they will unite to face a growing darkness that threatens the entire world. It is through his bond that they will become the Big Four. HIJACK, Merida/OC, Rapunzel/OC.
1. The Letters

**(Author's note: Hello readers, just so you know this is my first fanfic so please bear with me if the writing is a little off. I do appreciate reviews and advice if you're willing to give them but other than that I hope you enjoy the story) :)**

* * *

**The Letters**

The letter found Merida at her home in the Scottish Highlands. Her mother Elinor had come running into the kitchen waving the letter in the air triumphantly – although still in a dignified fashion.

'Merida, it's the letter! You're in,' she cried, happily dragging Merida out of her seat and hugging her.

'Wha'!' Merida gasped, a few crumbs flying from her mouth, 'I can actually go?'

'O' course lass' cried her father Fergus as he rose from his own seat to pull Merida into his own excited hug. 'I'm so proud o' my kids' he continued happily while behind him the triplets were taking advantage of the sudden distraction to sneak as many cakes as they could from the table.

Later on when the excitement had died down Merida was left alone in her room with the letter from Hogwarts all to herself. _No more lessons with mum, _she thought to herself as she reread the letter again, _No more of the same old borin' rules and expectations._ She pumped her fist into the air and quietly but excitedly hissed 'Yes!'

When she was a child Merida had loved to explore the woods around her home and play with the wisps that inhabited it. One day, though, the wisps had taken her back out of the forest to her mother where they had been attacked by the demon bear Mordu who had been tracking Merida from the shadows of the trees.

They had only just been saved by her father who had barrelled in with wand and sword drawn. He fought the enormous beast off and send it back to whatever dark place it had emerged from, but at the cost of his leg.

Since then Fergus had walked with a peg leg and Merida had been home schooled by her mother. The next years had been nothing but arduous hours, trapped in cold rooms, where she was forced to learn line after line of history, literature and whatever else her mother thought she should learn.

She had also spent many a painful hour when her mother tried day after day to tame Merida's fiery, tangled mop of hair with comb, brush and magic but to no avail. Merida's hair always stayed stubbornly sticking in every direction and left her mother in nearly despairing tears and Merida with the feeling that her scalp was being stabbed.

Then she became a sister when the triplets were born, they got away with murder, attacking the poor housemaids and anyone else holding a plate of buns with all sorts of devious tricks. Merida couldn't get away with anything, her mother always kept her locked up teaching her how to behave like a 'proper' witch.

The only solace she found where in the lessons her dad gave her. Fergus' teachings were never in classrooms; instead he would take Merida outside and teach her swordsmanship, archery and all other kinds of amazing things (he'd even taken her falconing once but never again when both his and her birds had done nothing but attack his own face). In these lessons of activity and energy Merida had found herself but she wanted more – magic.

Every child who grew up in a magical family wanted to learn magic of their own and Merida was no exception. Her parents had told her of the amazing magic school Hogwarts and that one day they would send a letter for her. They themselves had waited for the day when Merida would be called with as much anticipation as she had – although for darker reasons.

In the meantime, Merida could cheer excitedly because, at last, she could start to make her own fate.

* * *

The letter found Hiccup in his hometown of Berk, the northernmost wizard-only village in the United Kingdom. It was a sturdy village on an island twelve days north of Hopeless and a few degrees south of freezing to death. It was renowned as the greatest dragon taming village on Earth, followed closely by the institute in Romania.

Hiccup had been in the forge he had once shared with Gobber working on a new saddle mechanism for Toothless when Tiny, a Terrible Terror dragon whose species were now being used by the Berk people as a replacement for owls, flew in through the window and dropped it on his head. Hiccup put down his tools and picked it up, looked it over and read it. Then he read it again.

Hiccup leaped out of the doors in a full run whooping with delight while Tiny flew behind him puffing smoke excitedly. He ran past and around several people on their ways to work, nearly knocking a few over before running across the wooden bridge leading to the dragon training pit. Originally the pit had been caged so dragons couldn't escape but that had been removed to turn the pit into a perfect dragon pen.

'Dad, dad!' he yelled happily as he descended into the arena, 'It's Hogwarts; I'm in!'

He stopped with Tiny settling on his shoulder as he saw a group of people in a huddle that consisted of all his training partners, his dad and several older members of the village. Hiccup noticed that all the young members had letters identical to his.

'Really, _you _got in?' Ruffnut (female twin) said mockingly.

'Of course he did. They lowered the standards when they let _you _in' retorted Tuffnut (male twin) who was then concussed by a bucket thrown by Ruffnut.

'You _all_ got one too' he said incredulously – _of course they had_ he thought,_ it's not like I'm any more special than they are_.

'Aye you've done well son' Stoic said encouragingly, coming over to give Hiccup a gentle slap on the back that nearly sent the skinny boy sprawling on the floor, 'And after all you and yer friends have done for the village I can only imagine what you'd do for the school' – _burn it down probably, _ he thought privately.

'I don' suppose' he continued innocently, 'that you'd think o' leaving Toothless here?'

'What, leave Toothless!' Hiccup gasped. All of a sudden there was a general scramble in the group behind Stoic with yells of 'Night Fury!' and 'Get down!' as Toothless, having heard his name, came jumping down and landed on some of the slower Berkians. 'How could I leave Toothless dad?' Hiccup asked, laughing as the dragon nuzzled him.

Stoic nodded understandingly, you couldn't separate those two now with several spells and a team of Gronkels pulling them apart. He knew he'd have to write to the headmaster explaining the situation and asking for special permission, he wasn't looking forward to it.

Stoic had met Hiccups mother, a muggle, outside of Berk and had slowly introduced her to his world, teaching her the ways of his village and how it was the only wall of defence between one of the largest dragon nests and the muggle world further south.

Unfortunately it didn't last as Hiccups' mother died when giving birth to him; she named him Hiccup as a sort of gift in the hopes of preventing Stoic giving him something worse as was the tradition of Berk.

Stoic had been left alone to raise his son to be a true warrior and leader so that he could follow in Stoic's footsteps. It was surprising then that Hiccup had aged into a skinny and inquisitive boy so unlike his father. Stoic had apprenticed him to Gobber in the hopes that he would know how to raise Hiccup in a way that Stoic hadn't thought of.

Hiccup for his part had wanted to be just like his father, a dragon killer renowned throughout the world. That is until one of his latest dragon capturing devices had actually caught a night fury, the most elusive dragon. He had hunted it down in the hopes of proving himself to his father but at the crucial moment he…couldn't do it. He'd cut the ropes that bound it and let it escape.

After that he and the other recruits had been trained by Gobber, as magic was illegal for underage wizards to use (and in any case practically useless against dragons) it was customary for Berk soldiers to train with all manner of weapons and shields. After the first lesson Hiccup had felt something was off with the Night Fury; a dragon would always go for the kill, so why didn't he?

He'd tracked it down to a small hollow in the forest and discovered he'd damaged its tail leaving it unable to fly. Over time he'd bonded with the dragon, bringing him fish and naming him Toothless for the way he could retract his fangs.

As the months went by he trained with Toothless to learn to fly together using a saddle and prosthetic tail fin he invented. Toothless also helped teach him many harmless ways of taking down a dragon that helped to bring Hiccup fame amongst the villagers.

It didn't last however as he discovered not only the location of the dragons' nest but the terrible Hive dragon that controlled all the others and then Stoic had discovered his relationship with Toothless.

Long story short Hiccup had had to save Toothless from his father on the shores of the dragons' nest and then with Toothless save the village from the enormous Hive dragon.

They'd succeeded but Hiccup had lost a foot in the battle and had needed Gobber to fit him with a prosthetic limb of his own. It was funny really, now he and Toothless were only truly whole when they were together.

At the age of ten Hiccup had been the first dragon rider and the first to prove that everything the world knew about dragons was wrong. Since then he and his friends had helped to rebuild Berk to be a dragon taming village rather than a hunting one. Now, a year later, he was going on a new adventure to Hogwarts – and there was no way he'd be leaving Toothless behind.

* * *

Rapunzel was never sent a letter from Hogwarts. She had been a special case and so had been given a visit from the head of the school himself. Professor Nicholas St North had asked if he could have a moment with her alone and, after her parents and the ever present aurors had left, he spoke to her in a serious but friendly voice.

'Now miss Rapunzel why don't we get down to zhe brass tax. You have an incredible skill that I have never seen before and that is very rare these days. I would like you to come study at my school, it is evident to anyone that you have magic and we could teach you to control it far more than you already can. What's more is we can keep you safe until zhis hole mess blows over, Hogwarts is very well protected you know' He added encouragingly.

Rapunzel had sat there, absentmindedly brushing her golden hair that ran down into a heap on the floor. Then she looked up, looked around as if to seek guidance from the universe itself, looked back at North and asked 'Will I get to make friends there?'

Professor Nicholas smiled back at her, hoping to disguise the sad twinge that creased his eyes, and replied 'Of course you will'

'Ok, can I bring Pascal?'

'Pascal?'

'He's on your shoulder'

'Bah!'

Rapunzel hadn't known her real parents as she grew up. Instead she'd been raised by Mother Gothel, a witch who had sung her the same song when she was a baby and taught it to her as a child. It was a song ingrained in Rapunzel's very heart as well as her special hair; it was a song about a flower.

Gothel had also forbidden her from leaving the tower that was their home because, as she put it, the world was a cruel place filled with terrible people.

Her only friend had been Pascal, a small chameleon whose egg had been laid in a small pocket in the bricks of the tower. He was far more intelligent than the rest of his kind (and some of human kind) and this had been because when Mother Gothel had enchanted the tower in defensive and cloaking spells his egg had accidently absorbed the magic.

This gave Pascal greater intelligence but also had left a chink in the tower's defence and it was this chink that had let Rapunzel be discovered.

One year ago, when Mother Gothel had been away collecting hazelnuts, two aurors had discovered and broken into the tower that she shared with Rapunzel. They had been tracking the dark witch for years and, at the end of their search, were very surprised to find a little girl.

She had been excited at first to be taken out of the tower that she had never left all her life, until she discovered they weren't taking her back; then she began to think back on her mother's warnings. The aurors had rushed her back to the ministry of magic to make inquiries and had discovered that they had saved Rapunzel from a ten year old muggle kidnapping case.

They had taken her to see her parents but she had refused to believe they were telling the truth. As far as she was concerned Gothel was her mother and nothing would change that.

That is until they'd taken her to her room were the little cot still stood, it had a sundial with a pattern of a sun on the face. When Rapunzel saw it she had staggered back, bracing herself on the wall as images of all her paintings on the walls of the tower flashed before her eyes and the same sun pattern emerged in each on, hidden in plain sight.

She had run to her parents, embracing them and crying because she'd found a family but her old world in the tower with Gothel had crumbled around her. Later the aurors had sat her and her parents down and explained everything to them, including the existence of magic and the true nature of Mother Gothel.

Gothel was a dark witch, a very old and powerful woman with a black heart. She had explored all forms of dark magic in the pursuit of immortality, breaking several magical laws and had been pursued ever since. However, it seemed that according to Rapunzel she had achieved her goal because Rapunzel only knew her as a young woman with night black hair who always boasted about her youth and good looks.

The aurors then believed it had to have something to do with why she kidnapped Rapunzel.

As the debate went on Rapunzel had struggled with herself whether to tell the men about her secret. Gothel had told her never to reveal it, that it would bring nothing but trouble, but Gothel had told her a lot of things that turned out to be lies.

The auras had asked her a lot of questions after she showed them and then sent for experts in the ministry and all top wizard hospitals, none of them could explain her gift. Only her father enlightened them when he talked about his desperation to find a cure for his pregnant wife's incurable disease.

During a walk to get some fresh air he'd gone off the track and had discovered a glowing golden flower growing at the edge of a cliff. The way it shined seemed to almost beg him to be given to his wife. The feeling had been so strong that he'd taken the flower back and fed it to Rapunzel's mother in a glowing broth. It had cured her and Rapunzel had been born with the same gold coloured hair.

Since her rescue Rapunzel's family had been kept under protective custody by the aurors to ensure that Gothel wouldn't attack them to retrieve Rapunzel. They had to move house a lot and were never out of sight of at least one auror, for Rapunzel's parents it was worth it to finally have their lost daughter back, for Rapunzel it was like being stuck in the tower all over again.

But now, a year later, she was being offered a chance to see the world, or part of it, and Rapunzel felt at last that her life was about to begin.

* * *

Jack wasn't sent a letter either; he'd in fact received an invitation to join a few years ago.

Jack had been born into a strong line of winter mages on his father's side and simply a strong magical line on his mother's. Like the rest of his father's family Jack would be taught the secret family spells of ice and snow that no other wizard knew, if only he'd stay put and crack a book open every now and then.

He didn't like studying and far preferred running around outdoors and playing tricks on his little sister when she grew old enough. He wasn't really one for work; he liked to have fun instead.

So far in his life there had only been two occasions when Jack hadn't thought in his usual playful and happy way.

The first had been at his father's funeral where he'd been consumed with grief and sadness while his mother, holding his one year old sister, held back tears for both their sakes. His father had been an auror, a good one at that, and had died a 'hero's death' as his partner put it. He sacrificed his life in order to stop the dark wizard Pitch Black's attempt to kill all the most powerful wizards on Earth in order to gain their skill and magic, it had worked and Pitch had been imprisoned within the shadowed cells of Azkaban.

His father had only left him one thing, a book that contained all the secret spells of his family with a note that said 'You'll get the hang of them even if I can't be there to teach you. I'm proud of you'

The second time had been when he and his sister had gone skating over what turned out to be thin ice. He'd had to think seriously while his brain simultaneously panicked with the fear of falling into the killing water and the greater fear of his sister falling in. He came up with the idea to pretend to play a game of hopscotch and actually hoped a few paces across the slippery ice to get closer to his sister. He'd then encouraged her to the same 'Come on' he'd said, 'just one, two…three!' On three he leapt, grabbed his sister and threw her to safety, unfortunately that meant he had thrown himself further onto the ice and with a terrible crack it shattered under his feet.

All Jack remembered then was that it had been dark and cold and he had been scared, he knew he must be dying and it terrified him. Then the moon had shone through the ice, which was strange because it seemed like it had been day only a moment ago, and he wasn't scared any more.

His mother and sister remembered searching for him for hours along the icy edge of the lake until the moon had risen. It was then that tiny cracks slowly appeared in the ice, growing larger and into the form of a body until it fell away to reveal Jack floating into the air. He hung there for a moment, gasped deeply and fell back onto the reformed ice.

His mother used magic to lift his body over the fragile lake and move it over to them. She and his sister had brought him home and cared for him as well as they could until he woke up the next morning at which point they nearly suffocated him in hugs.

Jack was different after that, not in personality because nothing could change that, but in other ways. His once brown hair had turned a brilliant white and he had grown nearly immune to the cold.

His magic had also grown far stronger than it should be for a child his age; he began to create frost on any surface he touched and even began to call on frigid winds to carry him, although he hadn't been very good at it and kept crashing into trees or suddenly dropping from great heights. In short, the ice magic of his forefathers had somehow grown within him.

After an examination at St Mungos, Jack's mother had been informed that his magical power was overflowing and that he would need to learn to control this magic now before it consumed him. This was also when the professors from Hogwarts had arrived giving Jack a conditional entry when he turned of age and a letter from the ministry informing him that he was permitted to practice his magical talents in small quantities so long as it was not in view of the public.

It hadn't been that simple though. Jack's mother had needed to buy him a wand and hoped that would be the end of it but at Olivander's shop every wand had rejected her son.

'I might have some in the back' Olivander had said desperately, 'I'll just go and check'

'What about this?' Jack had replied, picking up a wizards staff in the shape of a shepherd's crook from the wall in the manner of someone who'll pick anything up to see what it did, if someone had written beside a red button 'End of the world button. DO NOT TOUCH!' the paint wouldn't have time to dry before jack had pressed it.

'Oh that's just a staff. You wouldn't be able to use it. It requires special training and a lot of skill' Olivander explained as he scoured the shop for more wands.

Jack hadn't put it back though, when he picked it up the crook's centre had begun to glow a strange blue and ice began to form along the hilt, it had felt like it fit perfectly in his hand.

He'd played with it a bit, twirling it around until suddenly he clipped its end against the floor where ice began to appear in the exact same fern pattern that sprouted from Jack's fingers.

Olivander had dropped the wands he'd managed to scrounge in sheer shock.

'How incredible!' he'd exclaimed, 'and without any training'

'It's so easy. Who needs skill when you're me? Jack boasted proudly resting the staff on his shoulder.

And that was how Jack obtained his staff with Mr Olivander waving away any idea of money, 'It clearly belongs to him' he had said before turning back to his wand stacks still muttering 'Incredible' under his breath.

Since then Jack had done nothing but play around, testing his new magic, he even began to read his father's book although he never paid much attention to the spells that didn't have pictures.

By the present day he'd learnt how to send up flurries of snow into the air and then freeze the ground beneath people as they were distracted. With his staff Jack also learnt how to control the icy winds, using it to guide himself along the currents far above the clearing where his house lay.

But now, finally, he'd turned eleven and that meant the real fun was only just about to start.


	2. The Sorting

**The Sorting**

As always Platform 9 3/4 was crowded. It was full of bustling students and their doting parents wishing them a goodbye and good luck. Among them Merida weaved and dodged, pushing her trolley along in front of her while her father managed to open the crowd before him and Elinor by simply being much bigger than everyone else.

Merida finally managed to get to one of the train's open doors and give her parents a goodbye. 'I'll miss yer both,' she said hugging them.

'Oh, I'm so proud,' was all her mother could say between the stray tears.

'Cheer up love, she'll be back for Christmas,' Fergus said, wrapping his arm around his wife while surreptitiously rubbing his eye with the other hand, 'and ye will send us an owl every now and then, right lass?'

'O' course but I've got to get on,' Merida laughed.

'Right yer are, don't forget to wave from the window'

Merida turned to step up to the train but discovered she was being blocked by another student struggling to lift her trunk onto the carriage.

'Need a hand?' She asked as she grabbed at the other end of the trunk and struggled to help lift it up.

'God, this ain't half heavy,' she huffed as they finally managed to get it on.

'Yeah, sorry about that,' the girl replied, 'it's just I never knew how many books there were in the world before and I'm trying to catch up'

'Ye mean this is just books!'

'Well and clothes but, yes, mainly books,' the girl answered, laughing.

'I'm Rapunzel by the way'

'Merida.'

Now that she had a minute Merida began to take notice of Rapunzel's looks. She was a pretty girl, not much older than Merida herself, with golden hair tied behind her back.

She looked back at Merida with large green eyes before smiling and asking, 'Do you want to see if there are any compartments free?' as she pointed behind her down the train with her thumb.

'Sure,' Merida replied as she lifted her own trunk up and started to follow Rapunzel down the carriage. Then she noticed Rapunzel's braid.

'Whoa, is that thing real?' she exclaimed, pointing at the massive braid of hair that fell to Rapunzel's waist and seemed almost as thick as she was.

'Oh, yeah it is. I've never cut my hair' Rapunzel said over her shoulder as they continued down the train.

'Why?'

'I've just never wanted to' Rapunzel said in a small tone that suggested it was all she planned on saying on the subject which Merida was alright with – after all it wasn't like_ she_ could really judge other girls on their hairstyles.

They found an empty compartment near the end of the carriage and sat down opposite each other after heaving Rapunzel's trunk onto the shelves together. Just as they were getting comfortable someone else opened the door.

He was a boy of about their age with limp brown hair and a face with more freckles than Merida. He was dressed in what looked like winter clothing, with a thick fur lined coat and thick sturdy boots. One boot actually. The two couldn't help but stare for a moment at the odd contraption that served as his left foot; it seemed to be some kind of spring based design that you wanted to look at to see how it worked.

'Uh, hi,' he said nervously, 'would it be alright if I came in here? It's just that the rest of my group's kinda taken up all the space in the other compartment.'

'Aw, wee lamb,' Merida said jokingly, 'no worries you can sit with us, no problem.'

'Thanks,' the boy replied, grinning as he stepped into the carriage shoved his trunk with the others and sat down gingerly next to Merida.

'My name's Hiccup,'

'I'm Rapunzel,'

'Merida. Hey is that a dragon?' She asked suddenly, pointing to the green snout that had just popped out of the inside of Hiccups coat.

'Yep, this is Tiny,' Hiccup said as he pulled the little dragon out of his hiding place and placed him on his shoulder, 'He's like my version of a messenger owl'

'That's so cool, he could be friends with Pascal,' Rapunzel said excitedly.

'Who's Pascal?' Hiccup and Merida asked together.

'He's hiding between the two of you,' Rapunzel giggled pointing at a patch of the seat that suddenly turned into a small chameleon, causing both Hiccup and Merida to jump and cry out in surprise.

'Wow, this looks like the fun carriage to me,' said a voice by the door as Pascal climbed back up to his usual spot on Rapunzel's shoulder.

The three turned to see a smiling boy with dazzling white hair dressed in a blue hoodie and jeans. They also noticed he was barefoot and carrying a shepherd's crook along with his trunk.

'I think I'll sit with you guys,' the stranger continued as he flung himself down next to Rapunzel, resting his feet on his trunk like a footrest.

It was just then that the train started to move and introductions were forgotten as the four stuck their heads out of the window to wave goodbye to their families.

'I'm Jack Frost by the way,' Jack continued as he sat back down and the countryside began to flash by the window. There was a brief moment were everyone introduced themselves and whichever animals happened to be on their shoulder.

They spent the next few hours talking about their recent histories after receiving their letters, or in Jack's case bragging to the new audience about how he'd got a visit from the teachers themselves because of his unique skills until being beaten by Rapunzel who revealed that the headmaster himself had visited her.

'How come?' He'd asked, slightly miffed that his story had been outdone, 'I didn't think the headmaster had to bother with house calls'

'Well my parents _are _muggles, and the school normally sends a teacher to break the news. I guess he got sent because they were understaffed this year,' Rapunzel had covered quickly, almost without skipping a beat.

It was about then that the carriage door slid open and a small woman with a large trolley asked them if they wanted anything. Merida, Hiccup and Jack all rushed forwards buying large amounts of cauldron cakes, chocolate frogs, pumpkin pasties and Drooble's best blowing gum. Rapunzel hesitated, not knowing what to buy as she'd never experienced wizard sweets.

'Uh, can I take a look at what you've got?' She asked overwhelmed.

'Of course dear,' the woman replied, opening the trolley to allow Rapunzel to look through the contents.

After much debating and advice from the others Rapunzel finally settled with two packets of Bertie Bot's every flavour beans and the trolley lady pottered off further down the train.

The next few minutes were spent in relative silence as the four ate through some of their snacks until Rapunzel broke it with a squeal when Jack opened his first chocolate frog.

'I didn't realise they actually moved,' she said, grimacing as Jack popped the frog in his mouth.

'Ye think that's a surprise, wait until ye try those beans,' Merida laughed with cauldron cake crumbs scattered around her lips.

'I always hated those,' Hiccup added darkly, 'I always get one of the bad ones and even when I had a whole packet to myself it was nothing but bad ones'

'Really? Well then I say we have a little fun,' Jack said cheekily, 'Why don't we all have one each and see what happens?'

'I'll throw in a chocolate frog,' he added tantalisingly when hearing a moan of protest from Hiccup.

'Ugh, fine'

'Game on then,' Rapunzel said opening a packet. They each took one different coloured bean and held it waiting for the go.

'Ready?' Jack said, 'One…two…three!'

They each ate their bean and started chewing and each face but Hiccup's lit up.

'Strawberry,' Rapunzel said happily.

'Fufge,' Merida said, muffled slightly by the fact she was still chewing.

'Caramel,' Jack declared smiling.

'Liver,' Hiccup coughed to the general laughter of the others. Jack tossed him a chocolate frog, still sniggering slightly.

'Here, you earned it.'

After that the conversation turned to Hogwarts itself and towards the houses and which they'd like to be in.

'I don't know,' Rapunzel replied thoughtfully, 'I don't really know enough about them. How about you Jack?'

'Me? I don't care,' Jack said, casually reclining in his seat, 'Hiccup?'

'Which ones do you think would want me?' Hiccup asked unsurely.

'I'll probably be in Gryffindor,' Merida announced proudly, 'It's a family tradition,' she explained.

'You wouldn't be a Weasley by any chance?' Jack asked curiously.

'No, I'm a Dunbroch. Why'd ye ask?' Merida replied.

'My dad once told me there's this family of red heads called the Weasleys who always end up in Gryffindor,' Jack explained.

'Nah, they're not mine,' Merida said certainly.

Their conversations lasted for the rest of the journey while the sun began to set and Tiny curled up to sleep on the small table with Pascal spread eagled on top of him, clearly enjoying the warmth in Tiny's belly.

As the moon started to rise the four got changed and began to prepare to get off as the train slowed at their destination.

They stumbled off the carriage, helping Rapunzel lift her heavy trunk off the step, and were immediately greeted by what appeared to be a giant rabbit. It stood on its hind legs as tall as a man and wore two leather straps around its shoulders that sheathed a few pouches and two boomerangs. These didn't seem like ordinary toy boomerangs though; these looked like they would come back to their master even if they had been thrown _through _you to do it.

'First years!' he yelled in an Australian accent, 'First years this way! Leave your trunks and owls to be collected here.'

'Well, looks like we've got to follow the kangaroo,' Jack said jokingly to the others.

'What was that?' The rabbit asked turning to the four.

'I'm a bunny,' he said, lowering his face to look directly at Jack, 'got it?'

'Yeah sure,' Jack returned casually, '_whatever_ you say'

The rabbit gave Jack a dirty look before hopping away to lead them and the first years to the edge of a giant lake while the older students headed down a different path. The first years realised as they neared the lake that boats lined the edge, each with a single lantern hanging from it.

The rabbit, who had already jumped into a boat, yelled out, 'It's four to a boat, hurry up or we'll miss the feast.'

There was a general scramble as people hurried to get a free boat. Hiccup saw Astrid and Snotlout share a boat with Fishlegs who was too large to allow a fourth passenger and the ever squabbling twins fighting over which boat to take. He followed behind Rapunzel as Merida and Jack pushed and shoved ahead of them to get an empty boat the four could share. Once everyone was in, the boats set off on their own, slowly crossing the dark waters.

'Is it me or is that a tentacle beneath us?' Rapunzel asked suddenly as she looked over the side into the waters. There was indeed and several other boats were already panicking at the sight of the monster.

'It's alright, just the giant squid out for a night time swim,' the rabbit called back reassuringly. It didn't really help.

Soon they reached the other side of the lake and the stone walls of Hogwarts rose up before them. Everyone sat there, mesmerised by the sheer size and grandeur of the school while their boats landed on the shore.

The rabbit guided them into the building and up a flight of stone steps that lead to two large double doors. The children could hear the sounds of raised voices behind them suggesting there was a large crowd awaiting the group.

'I am Professor Bunnymund,' the professor stated as he turned to the assembled students behind him.

'In a moment these doors will open and you will enter into the great hall were the welcome feast has already commenced. Before you start you must first be sorted into one of four houses: Gryffindor, Slytherin, Ravenclaw and Hufflepuff. Once you are, you will be directed to sit at your house table. Does anyone have any questions?'

A few hands rose in the crowd and Bunnymund looked over them before adding, 'Any questions not involving what species I am.'

Most hands lowered except for one, a short boy with ears that seemed to stick horizontally out of his head.

'How do we get sorted?' He asked, looking around nervously at the thought of what lay behind those doors.

Bunnymund only smiled and turned as the doors opened before him to reveal a massive stone hall. Its ceiling was so high it was nearly hidden in shadows while the hall itself was lit by thousands of floating candles that made the crowd gasp. Merida and a few other students were less surprised than, say, Rapunzel, whose mouth had dropped open in surprise, because she had been used to floating candles being used back home. But that had only been a few; here the sheer number of candles and the power of the charm that had to be keeping them up was awe inspiring in itself.

At the end of the hall stood a fifth table and seated behind it were presumably the teachers with, right in the centre, Headmaster North dressed in dark red robes.

As Bunnymund lead the students between the tables they could feel the stares of the older years bearing down on them. Bunnymund stopped the students in front of a raised platform where a single stool stood and on it sat an old worn hat. Bunnymund hopped up to the teachers table and nodded to the transfiguration teacher Professor Toothiana as she flew to the stool.

Toothiana was eerily beautiful; she was dressed in shimmering green robes that seemed to be partly merged to her body as feathers which grew up to around her cheeks. She flew suspended in the air by the rapid beating of wings sprouting from behind her back and the first years couldn't help themselves but stare at her.

'Do ye think there are any human teachers?' Merida whispered to the others who laughed nervously, or in Jack's case just laughed.

'I am Professor Toothiana,' the strange woman said, her voice resounding clearly throughout the hall.

'As I call your name please step up and sit on the stool,' she continued, picking up the hat and waving for an enchanted set of quill and parchment to float in front of her.

She began to call out names alphabetically and, one by one, the students stepped up and were sorted by the hat, who yelled out a house as it was placed on the student's head to general cheers of whichever house it had spoken.

'Dunbroch, Merida' Tooth chimed and Merida found herself being nudged forward by a grinning Jack.

'Good luck,' Hiccup whispered as she went past while Rapunzel and Pascal gave her a thumbs-up.

Merida stepped onto the platform and sat on the stool. There was a short pause while Professor Tooth struggled to fit the hat over Merida's untamed hair but finally it was on.

'Hmm, you're a brave one I'll grant you,' a soft voice said in her head, 'and a rebel too, you're certainly a GRYFFINDOR!'

The last word was spoken out loud by the hat and the table covered in red and gold roared its approval as Merida grinned and handed the hat back to the professor before running to join them.

There was another few minutes as more people were sorted into different houses and then, 'Frost, Jack!'

Jack sauntered up to the stool calmly, barely looking around him as he sat down and felt Tooth place the hat over his head.

'Ah, a trickster,' the hat said happily, 'you don't seem to have much respect for authority but you're loyal too, at least to the people who earn it.'

'Huh, thanks I guess,' Jack replied with a grin.

'Hmm, perhaps you'll do this house some good. SLYTHERIN!' The hat called and the table in green cheered and whooped as Jack stepped off to join them, although not before giving a slightly worried look towards the Gryffindor table and the two others yet to be decided.

Next came, 'Horrendous Haddock III, Hiccup!'

There was a wave of laughter at the name as Hiccup walked up to the hat, going red in the face. Except, that is, for the cheering behind him from Rapunzel who was quickly joined by a new student from Gryffindor and one from Slytherin.

'GO Hiccup,'

'Get on up there lad!'

'Good luck man,'

Their cheers gave Hiccup some encouragement as he sat down and the hat was placed on his head.

'Well aren't you interesting,' the hat proclaimed. 'You've made great changes in the world at such a young age and still you are modest. I know only one house that deserves you…HUFFLEPUFF'

There came a delighted whooping from the yellow and black covered table as Hiccup slowly came down to join them, giving a lingering look towards the others.

Finally after many more students, 'Solaris, Rapunzel' was called.

There was a brief pause as Rapunzel remembered her new last name and hurried up to the stool with Pascal still on her shoulder. As the hat descended she gave a worried look to the other three, separated by their houses.

'You are worried Miss Rapunzel. Why?' The hat asked curiously.

'I know you probably didn't mean too, but you've separated my friends and I'm just worried if we can stay like that if we're in different houses,' she thought back guiltily.

'I sort people into the house that will bring out their greatest potential,' the hat replied dryly, 'but remember that, although you are separated in house, you may always remain united in friendship. You are smart and have taught yourself almost everything you know but there is still much for you to learn. The house you deserve most is RAVENCLAW!'

There was a tumultuous clapping from the blue and bronze table as Rapunzel stepped down and smiled, not at the table, but at her three new friends in the hopes that she could reassure them that nothing had changed. It seemed to work too as the worried looks left the other's faces and they smiled back before starting to chat with some fellow students.

When the last of the first years were sorted a hush descended as the Headmaster stepped up to the owl shaped podium.

'I'd like to give a few words before we start,' he boomed in his deep Russian accent, 'try the black pudding, it's delicious.'

At that he sat back down and food magically sprang from the tables, filling them to the brim. Everyone started reaching in and helping themselves, stacking their plates with heaps of food.

* * *

The feast was over and everyone was getting up. The first years looked around, unsure of what to do when suddenly teachers appeared at the end of each table. They were the house masters with Professor Tooth as Head of Gryffindor, a small mute man in golden robes called Mansnoozie for Ravenclaw, Bunnymund for Hufflepuff and a small wrinkled old woman called Professor Whittler for Slytherin.

As the groups filed after the teachers the four waved each other goodbye from between the masses of people.

Merida followed Professor Tooth up several flights of moving stairs until the Gryffindors reached the seventh floor where the portrait of a woman called the Fat Lady hung.

'Password, Professor?' The painting asked.

'In Arcadia,' Tooth recited and the portrait opened to reveal a circular entrance into the Gryffindor common room.

'The password will change every month or so,' she told the students before flying away, 'be sure to check with the house prefects to get the new one'

Merida followed the rest of the crowd into the red furnished common room, covered in tapestries of famous Gryffindor wizards or different animals. One wall was dominated by a large fireplace which was surrounded by squashy armchairs and a table. She threw herself onto a chair and rested her feet on the table as she bit into an apple she had snuck up from the hall. It had been a pretty long day.

* * *

Hiccup was taken down a single flight of stairs as the Hufflepuff house was in the basement. They turned full circle into a right-hand side corridor, arriving at a stack of barrels piled on top of each other in a shadowy recess. Bunnymund tapped a rhythm on the second barrel up, middle of the second row, which opened to form a tunnel entryway into the common room.

'The trick is to tap this exact barrel with the precise rhythm of the name Helga Hufflepuff,' he explained as he stepped away from the entrance to let them pass. 'The entrance is covered in protective spells so if you tap it incorrectly the spells will activate. It's always fun to watch you first yeas get it wrong,' he added smiling.

Hiccup passed through into the common room which was a large, earthy, round room with a low ceiling. The round windows set in the walls behind a crackling fireplace somehow showed sunlit fields filled with dandelions and rippling grass. Plants hung from every corner giving the place a flowery aroma while the room glowed with a golden sunlight. If Hiccup could think up one word to describe the place it would be cosy.

While everyone else relaxed on the cushioned yellow and black sofas Hiccup walked through the large round door that lead to the boys' dormitory and into the First Year rooms. He found his trunk at the end of a bed and sat down; he opened it and fished around to find his sketchpad and a piece of charcoal. He then lay back against the wall and started to draw.

* * *

Rapunzel and the other Ravenclaws were taken to another tower by Professor Mansnoozie up a tight spiral staircase until they reached the entrance to Ravenclaw tower. It looked like an ordinary door except for the large bronze eagle-shaped knocker which asked Mansnoozie, 'What walks on four legs in the morning, two during the day and three at night?'

Mansnoozie looked at the assembled students and a question mark formed above his head, written in golden sand. The first years looked at one another questioningly, a few people tried to work it out but only Rapunzel's hand shot up into the air.

'A man, because he crawls on all fours as a baby, walks on two legs as an adult and uses a cane when they're older,' she explained warily.

There was a grinding sound as the door behind Mansnoozie opened up and a gold tick appeared above Mansnoozie's head as the professor smiled and nodded. A series of images appeared over his head that forced the students to try and work it out like a game of charades.

'He says you have to figure the riddle out yourself or wait for someone else to. That way you get to learn,' a fifth year told them as he passed by the group.

'Mansnoozie's been mute for years,' he whispered to Rapunzel as they passed through the door. 'He uses that picture charm to communicate, don't worry you learn to translate pretty quickly'

The Ravenclaw common room was wide and circular; the walls were hung with blue and bronze silks while gracefully arched windows revealed the dusk covered grounds. Rapunzel's eyes were immediately drawn up to the domed ceiling which had been painted with stars that were mirrored in the midnight blue carpet. Tables, chairs and bookcases covered every inch of the room, the place even had its own reading material. Rapunzel smiled at Pascal as they started to look at the titles; they _liked _this place.

* * *

Jack was lead down to the dungeons, he wasn't entirely happy with that either. He preferred the open air to the underground and he was worried exactly how comfortable he'd be down there.

Professor Whittler led them to a stretch of wall that looked no different to its neighbours.

'Nevermore,' Whittler said and the wall slide aside, revealing a stone room lit with a green glow. She then turned and explained the changing of the passwords every fortnight before trundling off down the corridor.

_Well, _Jack thought as he looked around, _this place looks…nice._

The room was certainly grand, if a little cold which wasn't really a problem for Jack anyway. It was lit by green lamps and furnished with dark green button-tufted sofas and wooden cupboards which were all decorated with a few skulls giving the place a gothic feeling. Tapestries lined the walls depicting different adventures and battles while windows looked out into a dark surface that Jack realised must be the Black lake.

'Hey, who brought the staff!' Someone yelled, carrying Jack's crook through from the first year dormitory.

'Oy! Hands off,' Jack said, snatching the crook out of the boy's hands.

'How come _you_ can use a staff?' A seventh year asked incredulously as a small crowd gathered around Jack.

'Well what can I say? It's just natural talent,' Jack said happily, brandishing the crook.

Ok, so maybe it wasn't all bad.

* * *

**Author's note: Hi guys. Just to say I know there's a bit of controversy over which house Hiccup and Rapunzel belong to, so for those of you who believe Hiccup should be Ravenclaw and Rapunzel Hufflepuff I understand but please bear with me as I think differently. Thanks :)**


	3. The First day

**The First Day**

As Jack walked up to the Great Hall, his staff resting on his shoulder, for breakfast the next morning he ran into Hiccup who was walking up from his own common room. Like Jack he was wearing the same school robe, grey jumper, a shirt and tie except that the underside of his robe and the stripes of his tie were now yellow and black to match his house colours while Jack's had turned green and silver.

'Hey Hiccup,' he said as he fell into stride beside the freckled Hufflepuff.

'Hi Jack, going to breakfast?'

'Yep, care to join me?'

'Uh, are we allowed to sit on other house tables?' Hiccup asked nervously.

'Oh right. That is a problem,' Jack said as realisation dawned.

'Oh hey it's Merida and Rapunzel,' he said, pointing to two figures in red and blue ahead of them before running off with Hiccup to catch the girls up.

'I know, it's not really fair that we can't sit with each other,' Rapunzel said as they explained the situation.

'What do you think Merida?' She asked the redhead who had been walking in contemplative silence.

'Hand me yer timetables,' Merida demanded suddenly, holding up her hand in which they dutifully placed their timetables. She leafed through them and smiled, 'Well I think I've solved our problem,' she said in a satisfied voice.

'We share the same classes,' she explained happily as she handed their timetables back, 'we can walk to class together and sit next to each other'

'Oh right,' Hiccup said relieved.

'Well, glad to hear that's all sorted,' Jack said happily as they entered the hall, 'I'll see you guys in…Transfiguration then'

They all said a few parting words and then split off to their own tables and started to eat as the owls began to deliver the morning post and either read the newspaper or talked with fellow students.

When the time came for first lessons they all grabbed their books and met back at the Great Hall's entrance before heading off for the classroom.

'I'm so excited,' Rapunzel burst out happily, 'I've been looking forward to this _so_ much!'

'Glad to hear it,' Jack said laughing.

'No more literature or history,' Merida said wistfully, 'I hated those kinds of lessons.'

They arrived at the class and waited outside the door, chatting, while the rest of the class turned up. Eventually Professor Toothiana opened the door and, once everyone had piled in, she started to sign the register. It took longer than it should have as Tooth had a tendency to quickly list several names in succession and then had to backtrack to find students who had missed their names the first time round.

When every name had finally been ticked off Toothiana began her lesson by giving a demonstration where she turned her desk into a pig and back, making the class gasp in astonishment. She then gave small lecture on the transformation formula and after that she had the class practice a basic incantation to turn matches into needles.

Merida proved to be quite good at the class, easily transforming the matches on her first go while Hiccup and Rapunzel took longer, waving their wands and reciting the spell repeatedly until they finally had a small pile of needles, or in some cases sharp matches. Jack was abysmal, he didn't seem to be able to concentrate enough to get the spell to work and he had to figure out a different way to focus his staff as it was too big to wave like a wand.

At the end of the lesson his matches hadn't changed and, while everyone else was filing out, Toothiana had told him, 'Not a promising first go Jack but give it time and I'm sure you'll get the hang of it'

'Well that was cool,' Merida said with a little more spring in her step as they left, 'What have we got next?'

'Charms,' Jack said in a deflated manner.

'Cheer up Jack,' Rapunzel said cheerily, 'We can't all be good at everything or where'd be the fun?'

Jack just grunted back in a non-committal manner, sticking his hands in his robe pockets.

'Aw, come on Jack, we thought you were all about fun,' Hiccup joked, putting his arm around Jack's shoulder while Merida linked arms with him and Rapunzel.

'Get off,' Jack said as he tried to shake them off, but not so hard that he actually would, and the three knew they'd got to him because he was smiling.

Charms cheered Jack up a lot. He enjoyed the guessing game like way they had to translate Mansnoozie as he started his lecture and nearly laughed himself off the seat when the professor blew gold sand out his ears in frustration at their slowness. Eventually they managed to figure out the name of the spell was Wingardium Leviosa and it was used to levitate the feathers that had been in front of each student's seat.

Rapunzel clapped delightedly as her feather floated immediately to the ceiling at her first incantation while Pascal chirped in encouragement from her shoulder and she spent the rest of the lesson happily renewing the charm whenever the feather floated back down. Jack was doing better in this class and was able to lift the feather up to eye height and tried to get it to chase Merida's which was listing slightly to the left, much to the red head's frustration.

Hiccup spent half the lesson repeating the spell with the necessary swish and flick but was unable to get the feather to do more than twitch slightly. Eventually he just started to jab at it with his wand, repeating the spell angrily. There was suddenly a loud bang and the feather exploded in Hiccup's face, leaving it covered in soot and his hair sticking backwards, making him look like a porcupine.

The class burst out laughing as strands of feather fell around Hiccup, including Jack and the others who clapped him on the back as they continued to double over. Professor Mansnoozie walked over to observe the charred table and Hiccup's blackened face, he waved his finger in a jokingly stern way and an image of a wand using the swish and flick motion appeared over his head. _Use the right technique,_ was the clear message.

About then the bell rang and Hiccup gratefully began to pick up his slightly charred textbooks as the others gathered their feathers and placed them all in a box that Mansnoozie offered. He hurried out the class and headed back to the great hall for lunch while the others ran to catch up.

'Hey Hiccup wait up!' Jack called as they picked up the pace.

'Don't worry about how well ye did. It's only yer first lesson, anyway remember how Jack did in Transfiguration,' Merida reminded Hiccup as she squeezed his shoulder kindly.

'In my defence I didn't blow anything u…OW!'

'Sorry Jack; didn't look where I was going,' Rapunzel apologised as she removed her elbow from his ribs.

'Don't worry guys; it's not about the class. Okay it's mainly not about the class,' he defended as they gave him withering looks.

'Seriously! I'm just anxious to see Toothless between lunch and lessons'

'Toothless, who's Toothless?' Jack asked curiously.

'My friend, he's a dragon.'

'Another dragon?' Merida asked in surprise, 'What about Tiny?'

'Well, he's like my messenger owl. Toothless is my partner, he's staying with my friend Gobber, the Care for Magical Creatures professor'

'Can we come too,' Rapunzel asked hopefully, 'It sounds pretty cool to go and see more dragons'

'What _are_ you any way, the dragon whisperer?' Jack asked cheerily as he brushed his staff along the floor, freezing it so a couple of Ravenclaws slipped over behind them.

'Yeah, something like that,' Hiccup replied mysteriously with a smirk as they arrived at the entrance of the great hall.

'Fine, meet me here after lunch if you want to come meet him'

They all agreed and went off to get lunch, although the fact that they'd arrived together hadn't gone unnoticed by certain people at their tables who glowered at them suspiciously. They had also been noticed by the headmaster, as they had that morning, sitting at his usual spot and whispered quietly to Tooth and Mansnoozie, 'It's already starting, and zhe year has only just begun. We shall have to keep a closer eye on them than we thought'

* * *

After lunch Hiccup guided the others out onto the school grounds and towards Gobber's hut.

'Why does this guy live out on the grounds instead of in the school like everyone else?' Jack asked with a look of disgust on his face as his bare feet sank into the slightly damp mud.

'I think it's traditional for the Care for Magical Creatures teacher to live out here,' Hiccup suggested, 'It's so they can take care of the animals between lessons'

'Well whatever, as long as we get there soon,' Jack replied miserably as his steps continued to squelch.

'Don't worry Jack, I think we're here,' Rapunzel said as they turned a corner and Gobber's hut appeared before them. While the lights in the actual hut weren't lit the small forge that had been added next to it was glowing with the flames within while smoke curled up from its chimney.

'Hey Gobber, Toothless, I've come to visit you both!' Hiccup called as they neared and the clanking noise inside the forge grew louder.

'Hiccup? Is that you ye little troll hunter,' a large man with a funny stone tooth cried happily as he stepped out of the forge, his changeable hand currently fitted with a blacksmiths hammer.

'Oh, and you've brought friends. What a surprise'

'Sorry I sort of invited them without asking,' Hiccup said apologetically.

'No it's just a surprise ye've managed to make friends so fast,' Gobber joked, pulling Hiccup into a backbreaking hug.

'So where's Toothless?' Hiccup asked. 'I promised the guys I'd introduce them to him'

There was a draconic roar from behind them as Toothless barrelled out from the trees in a swift black blur and pounced on Hiccup who started to laugh as the dragon nuzzled his face.

'So this is Toothless,' Rapunzel said politely while Pascal cowered in the weave of her hair.

'Doesn't look toothless ta me,' Merida said dazedly, Toothless had jumped pretty closely to her on his way to Hiccup and she'd got a pretty good look at a large set of fangs.

'I called him that because he can retract his fangs,' Hiccup laughed as he stood up and Toothless sat next to his side, looking inquisitively at the others.

'So guys this…is Toothless, Toothless these are my new friends Rapunzel, Merida and Jack,' Hiccup continued as Toothless began to approach the three, his head cocked slightly to the side in curiosity.

'Don't be scared, he won't hurt you,' Hiccup reassured them as they stepped away from the dragon unsurely, 'Just hold your hand out and he'll come to it'

Merida looked at the others and, seeing that they weren't willing to go first, stepped up and held her hand out. As Toothless neared she stopped breathing, anticipating that any second the giant lizard would attack, but then his head met her hand and suddenly she was staring into green eyes bigger than Rapunzel's that looked back innocently.

'Oh wow,' she breathed as she felt the warmth of the dragon seep into her fingers. She reached out her other hand and brushed it lightly across the smooth black scales along Toothless head and heard Toothless give a content purring noise.

'Aw, he's just a big softie really,' Rapunzel cooed as she and Jack approached and began to stroke the dragon along his scaly neck. Pascal suddenly sprang down from his hiding place and along Rapunzel's arm so he could stare intensely into the dragon's eyes, clearly weighing the dragon up. All Toothless did in return was give the chameleon a small lick in a friendly kind of way which seemed to work as Pascal spent the rest of lunch sitting happily between the dragon's ears.

The four settled down to play with Toothless while Gobber brought out some butter beer from his hut. He then began to regale them with stories from his own time in Hogwarts until Merida interrupted by asking:

'How come Toothless has a fake tail fin?'

'That would be because of me,' Hiccup answered guiltily.

'You hurt your dragon!' Rapunzel exclaimed in horror.

'It was a different time,' Hiccup said upset, 'and if I hadn't, we'd have never met and then where would I be? Still just a loser in Berk? A failure to my dad?'

'If it weren't for you two Berk would still be nothing but a pack o' dragon slayers still getting' themselves killed for nothing,' Gobber reassured him as he ruffled Hiccup's hair.

'Wait a minute,' Jack said confused, 'I thought Hiccup got Toothless after he was trained by a tamer?'

'Course not,' Gobber laughed, 'Hiccup was the _first_ dragon tamer. He taught us everything we know'

'The first,' Jack said blankly, his brain unable to process the idea that little, nervous Hiccup had managed to tame a _wild_ nightfury.

'You haven't told 'em?' Gobber asked incredulously.

'I'd be bragging to everybody I met. Well…tell 'em then'

'Fine,' Hiccup huffed. For the rest of lunch, he told his four friends the story of him and Toothless, stopping every now and then when one of them asked a question. When he was done they sat staring at him as he rested his back against Toothless' warm body and the dragon's tail curled over his legs.

'Cool!' The three suddenly said in unison, they thought it was incredible and wouldn't stop asking questions until the bell rang.

The time eventually came that they had to get up and leave for Potions. They all said a quick goodbye to Gobber and everyone gathered around Toothless to give him a final pet before heading off.

'Bye bud!' Hiccup called behind them as they walked back up the path to school.

'You really love him don't you?' Rapunzel asked with Pascal sitting back on her head.

'Yeah, he's pretty much my best friend,' Hiccup replied smiling.

'Oh Hiccup, I'm hurt,' Jack said in mock pain, 'I thought _I_ was your best friend'

They all rounded the corner, giggling as Jack pretended to turn his crook on himself in joke sorrow. They then turned into the courtyard outside the school entrance which was currently full of other students walking around in groups.

'Hi Jack,' one Slytherin girl called out, waving at Jack until she saw who he was walking with and then stopped to whisper frantically to her friends who were all giving the group strange looks.

The four noticed that a lot of first years were looking at them strangely as well as a few older students from every house.

'That was weird,' Merida said as they stepped back into the school and followed Jack to the stairs to the dungeons.

'Well we're not exactly the most inconspicuous group,' Hiccup stated, 'I've got my metal foot, you and Rapunzel have the hair and Jack's got his flashy staff'

'My staff isn't flashy, it's cool,' Jack defended heatedly.

'_Whatever_ you say,'

They arrived at the gloomy entrance to the Potions class behind everyone else and so where the last to get in which forced them to sit at the only two empty tables at the front. Jack sat with Rapunzel behind one cauldron and Merida and Hiccup behind the other. They were the only tables with more than one house colour, although they didn't notice it.

The current Professor had seemingly tried to liven up the otherwise depressing dungeons that served as the potions room by decorating it in hundreds of different woodcuts, all containing the form of a bear. The professor's desk was also littered with carvings as well as plain blocks of wood and what looked like several types of carving tools. A stuffed raven perched on one corner and appeared to stare out over the classroom with its black eyes.

Professor Whittler herself stood at the head of the classroom, signing people off as they entered. When everyone had taken their seats she placed the register quietly on her desk and stepped forward, opening her mouth solemnly.

'Oh, here we go. Here comes the speech,' the raven suddenly complained making everybody jump in their seats.

Professor Whittler scowled and, in one swift movement, brought her wand out and flicked it. A broom that had, until then, been propped quietly in a corner sprang to life and swatted the bird clean off the table before busily starting to brush around the room.

'That's enough out o' you ye overgrown pigeon,' the professor cackled before turning back to the class speaking in a sombre and serious voice:

'Welcome to Potions, for many of ye this may well prove to be the most trying and complex of classes as ye learn to mix yer own batch of deadly poisons, wondrous cures and even how ta brew enchantments themselves. The more talented of ye may even get it right and not blow yerselves up. Now hurry up dearies, turn to page 3 in yer books and start brewing that cure for boils. Be sure ta leave the results in yer cauldrons at the end o' the lesson,' she finished cheerily waving her hands in a hurrying fashion.

'Shouldn't you teach us how first?' A Ravenclaw asked worriedly from the back.

'Where's the fun in that dear?' the professor continued as she returned to her desk and began to hack away at a lump of wood, 'Ye might as well learn to run before ye can walk. Or burn yer eyebrows off, either way'

There was a general scramble as each group fetched the necessary ingredients for the potion and any particular cutting, crushing or mixing tools. Jack was impressed at how fast Rapunzel moved, quickly chopping ingredients and tossing them into the cauldron one after the other, occasionally looking back at the book for further instructions before returning again to the cauldron.

'If you need any help just ask,' he said as he leaned back in his chair.

'Sure, crush these roots into a powder for me,' Rapunzel replied, not looking away from her work which meant she didn't see him stick his tongue out. Pascal did, however, who pointed to the roots with his tail and made a crushing motion with his hand and a no-nonsense look on his face.

'Uh, Merida I don't think you should be adding that yet,' Hiccup's nervous voice floated over as Jack got to work.

'No worries, it can't matter too much _when_ ye put them in. I mean the potion doesn't care when they get put in just so long as they are,' Merida's voice replied, all confidence.

Another few minutes ticked by, Jack presented Rapunzel proudly with his powdered root and was given another job while Rapunzel surreptitiously mashed in the lumps he'd left.

Suddenly there was a FROOM! and a dazzling purple light filled the room.

After Jack and Rapunzel blinked away the last dancing spots of light in their eyes they saw Merida and Hiccup standing beside a smoking cauldron. Both of their faces were blackened with soot and the hair had been blown back until it was at right angles to their bodies, Merida's particularly managed to stretch a fair distance behind her before drooping at the ends.

'Next time follow the recipe,' Whittler lectured from her desk, having not looked up since the explosion.

Then the laughter started.

It took a long time to die down and Merida and Hiccup could do nothing but stand rigidly in front of their cauldron still petrified from the explosion. Only Rapunzel and Jack, after he poured in the final ingredient into their cauldron, rushed forward to see if they were alright. Rapunzel took Merida's face in her hand to look it over for burns while Pascal chirped worriedly on her shoulder. Jack, meanwhile, tapped Hiccup on the head twice and laughed gleefully as Hiccup swayed slightly.

'Are you guys alright?' Rapunzel asked worriedly as she pushed Jack out the way to see Hiccup.

'Buh,'

'Muh,'

'Scared by the bang were you?' Jack asked loudly into their ears. This seemed to wake them up as the two turned angrily to Jack, the visible skin under the soot turning red, and said:

'Shut up Jack!'

'It was _her_ fault anyway,' Hiccup continued, angrily motioning at Merida.

'_My_ fault,' Merida retorted, 'How is it my fault?'

'_You_ were the one who kept chucking stuff in when you weren't supposed to!'

'_You_ had the book; it was yer job to tell me what ta do.'

'As if you'd listen you psychotic Scot,'

The two suddenly stopped arguing as they realised Jack and Rapunzel were laughing at them again.

'What's so funny?' Merida asked in a deflated voice as she calmed down.

'Your freckles,' Jack managed between laughs as he and Rapunzel resorted to leaning on each other for support, 'they're…they're turning blue.'

The two fell back into hysterical giggles as Merida and Hiccup looked back at each other and began to wipe their faces clean with gasps of horror. It was true, their freckles _were_ blue but not just the colour blue; their freckles were _glowing_.

'Oh gods,' Hiccup moaned as he gingerly touched his face.

'Please tell me this isn't permanent!'

'And you thought we stood out before,' Jack said happily as he and Rapunzel put their arms around the two.

The group looked behind them and saw the rest of the class staring daggers at them as their cauldrons bubbled unchecked.

'Don't worry about us,' Jack said reassuringly, 'We were just checking up on our friends.'

A dozen unsmiling faces stared back and a few couples began to mutter to each other under their breath. Fortunately the bell rang and students began to pack up their books and potions equipment although not before giving the four another dirty look as they left.

Eventually the four were left on their own with their arms still wrapped around each other.

'What was that about?' Merida asked, confused.

'I have no idea,' Jack replied in equal confusion.

'Well, let's hurry up anyway, dinner's about to start,' he added, brightening up.

The four rushed around to gather their things, thanked Professor Whittler and wandered out into the empty dungeon, smiles returning to their faces as they chatted and joked, looking for all the world like a perfect picture of friendship.

* * *

Many miles away on an isolated rock in the middle of a raging sea Daniel Fayefield shivered and gathered his auror's robes around him. This was not a cushy job and the hours were way too long but at least the pay was worth it.

'Hey Daniel,' Alexander Woodcross greeted as he walked down the dark corridor. 'I hear your daughter's got into Hogwarts'

'Yeah, I got a letter this morning,' Daniel replied proudly. 'She's a Slytherin like her old man. It sounds like she's already got a crush too,' he added darkly, 'some 'amazing' guy called Jack Frost. Apparently he can use a staff at eleven but I don't believe a word of it, he's just showing off to impress the house'

'Did you say Frost?' A dark, intelligent, voice asked behind them.

'Shut up Black. We're not playing your games'

Pitch Black stood up in his cell, a thoughtful look in his eye.

'Frost,' he said to himself, 'the little Frost boy in Hogwarts already?'

'I told you to shut it!' Daniel yelled. He'd always thought Black was creepy.

'I really must thank you Fayefield and you Woodcross. If it had not been for your incompetence my education here would have been greatly hampered,' Black said half to himself, still walking towards them.

'What are you on about?' Alexander asked irritably, he suddenly felt a little scared, which was ridiculous…were the shadows moving?

'Azkaban,' Pitch replied, stroking his finger along the walls of his cell, 'this place had been the primary habitat for the dementors for years. The very stones are ingrained with their powers and I decided to spend a few years studying what they left behind. It's been very informative, I can tell you. Now, though, I think I've learned all I could, so I'll be leaving'

'You must be kidding,' Daniel scorned, trying to hide the whimper in his voice, 'Your wand is locked up safe and sound in the dungeons and you'll never get your hands back on it'

Pitch leaned forward, his face nearly pressing against the bars, and smiled horribly as if he was enjoying a joke at their expense.

'I will now'

There was an eruption of black sand and mist pouring out of the cracks in the stones to form the bodies of great black horses that charged at the guards, their nostrils flaring. The two wizards pulled out their wands, their mouths opening to form a spell, which turned into screams of fear as their heads filled with terrifying images that overrode every other sense and emotion.

When it was over another horse arrived, reared up on its hind legs and smashed the bars of Pitch's prison. It trotted forward to Pitch's outraised hand and reverently placed a thin black wand into it.

'Meet my Nightmares,' he said to the bodies lying before him, 'so much more of an improvement to the dementors'

He waved his wand experimentally and smiled at the familiarity of the feeling. He began to laugh at the sheer thrill of freedom before he waved his wand in a command to the Nightmares.

'Find him,' he ordered and the Nightmares reared and ran in obedience to his words..

His laughter filled the cells of Azkaban again as the Nightmares galloped away, their manes and tails streaming behind them like a group of dark comets.

* * *

**Author's note: So Pitch has made his first appearance, what do you guys think? Just so you know I am currently uploading at a pace I can't keep up with. From now on it will only be about one or two chapters per week. Hope you guys are still enjoying this and thanks for sticking with the story :)**


	4. The Confrontation

**Confrontation**

*Two months later*

'Come on Merida, it's not that hard,' Rapunzel said as Merida slumped back in her seat, angrily pushing her potions homework away. It was a Sunday and they were sitting opposite one another in an empty classroom with the potions textbook and the last pages of Merida's homework between them.

'Ye can say that, ye've been getting nothin' but top marks since we started,' Merida complained. 'Why don't Jack and Hiccup have to go through this?'

'Jack and Hiccup are getting good marks in Potions so Hiccup's taken Jack flying on Toothless,' Rapunzel replied pushing Merida's work back to her, 'Now come on you know this one'

'Aw, he never takes me flying,' Merida whined as she picked up her quill and started to write.

'He took us flying yesterday,' Rapunzel reminded her as Pascal made an exasperated sound, 'Anyway he thought Jack needed cheering up,' she continued sadly.

'Slytherins finally do it?' Merida asked sullenly.

'Yep, that's all of us,' Rapunzel sighed, 'I'm impressed he lasted as long as he did, even the Hufflepuffs told Hiccup to stop hanging out with us a week ago'

It had all started two months before. The glares they'd been getting from fellow house members, mostly the younger years but also a few higher ones, didn't stop after that and kept getting worse. People began to ignore them at meals and stopped talking to them in the common rooms, groups also started to mutter behind them as the four walked past.

Finally Merida had had enough and confronted her house one night in the common room after a classmate called Susan Nix whispered to her friend and the two started giggling while Merida walked past.

'What's yer problem?' Merida demanded, turning angrily.

'Hey _you're_ the one with the problem,' Susan laughed mockingly, 'why else would you keep hanging around those losers? Unless you've got a problem with your own house'

'My friends aren't losers,' Merida retorted, growing red in the face as the rest of the house turned to watch the show, 'and I like Gryffindor, it's _my_ house'

'What's going on?' A fifth year called Jordan asked, stepping in between the two, 'Merida can spend time with whoever she wants, it doesn't matter what house they are,' he defended calmly.

'Really, what if they're a Slytherin?' Susan replied smugly with her arms crossed.

At that, more of the upper years looked around with curiosity or worry in their eyes and Merida could hear a few quiet gasps of shock.

'Whoa, a Slytherin? You don't want to hang around with them,' Jordan said, turning to Merida with a similar look of worry, 'That lot are bad news Merida'

'Ta hell with that,' Merida retorted angrily – _Great, now the higher years were turning on her as well_. 'Jack's a nice guy, I don't care what house he's in'

'Are you blind?' Susan spat back from behind Jordan, 'He'll just turn into another dark wizard like all the rest'

Merida drew her wand and pointed it at Susan, pushing Jordan aside in one quick movement, ready to fire whichever curse first popped into her head while Susan struggled to free her wand from a robe pocket.

'You take that back!'

'Expelliamus!' A voice cried, there was a flash of red light and Merida and Susan's wands sailed out of their hands and into the grip of the house prefect, Amanita Dragonblood.

'I don't want any more of this,' Amanita continued angrily as she stalked towards them.

'Gryffindors should not turn their wands on each other no matter what Merida. If you want to prove you're loyal to this house you will _never_ do it again.'

'As for you Susan, just because Jack is Slytherin doesn't mean he'll become a dark wizard,' she continued, turning to the sneering Susan.

'Ha!' Merida cheered at Susan triumphantly; glad to finally have someone on her side.

'But that doesn't mean you should spend time with him Merida,' Amanita chastised as she handed Merida her wand, 'Slytherin is our biggest rival and I wouldn't put it past them to use a spy against us.'

'Jack is not a spy!' Merida yelled furiously, physically restraining herself from raising her wand again.

'So keep an eye on _him_ and don't fight with _us_, okay,' Amanita continued, ignoring Merida's outburst while Susan made faces behind her back.

After that Merida had got nothing but scathing looks from the rest of the house, Amanita had provided her some breathing space in the common room but not for long. The rivalry between Gryffindor and Slytherin had always been pretty deep and two being friends was unthinkable, the house wasn't planning on taking it lightly. In hindsight she also knew it had been a bad move to draw her wand on a fellow house member, hexing Susan Nix was hardly going to make Gryffindor warm to her.

Not everyone looked down on her though, she could see a few of the higher years didn't care one way or the other and Hiccup's old friends Astrid and Snotlout hadn't joined in on the jeering but they hadn't taken her side either. They'd maintained a neutral kind of friendship with Hiccup, they'd say hi and talk happily with him until someone else saw them. Hiccup didn't blame them; they just wanted to fit in with their house.

It had been different for Rapunzel; she was just too likable to be bullied. She was such a pleasant person to be around, always asking how people were or giving them homework tips and always with a cheery smile on her face, that no one could ever bring themselves to make fun of her for being friends with the others. A group of first and second years eventually decided to tell her that; maybe, spending most of her time with none Ravenclaws would hurt her reputation or her academic scores, at least that's what some people were thinking, not them of course. She'd just looked at them oddly as if she didn't realise she'd had a reputation and they'd walked off.

She'd known what they were thinking of course and it had hurt her to see a sort of gap forming between her and the Ravenclaws. Not anything physical, they still talked to her and some even waved and said hello as they passed her in the corridor, but she could still feel it, a space that divided her from them and prevented her from getting too close.

She also had to deal with the taunting from the other houses as they passed the group in the courtyard, so it wasn't as if she had it any easier.

The four had stuck together though; even when they were being insulted and shunned they remained friends. Merida had no idea why they fought so strongly to stay together but they did and she couldn't help but feel proud of their little group.

She looked wistfully out the window to the cloudy sky outside.

'I wonder how the others are doin',' she asked thoughtfully.

'They're probably down by now, it's nearly dinner time,' Rapunzel replied, 'Now let's finish this Potions off'

'Ugh, yes _mum._'

* * *

Jack and Hiccup trudged back up the grounds together. Jack was dressed in his casual blue hoodie and jeans while Hiccup wore his riding gear and helmet. Jack also looked a lot happier than he had in weeks, the excitement of the flight helping to wash away the memories of the last few months.

'So you take him out to fly every day?' He asked as they rounded the hill and came into view of Hogwarts.

'Every morning,' Hiccup replied, 'Toothless likes to stretch his wings at least once a day so I generally head out before breakfast'

'That's a hell of a way to start the morning,' Jack said impressed.

He was no stranger to flying after all, he was improving more and more with controlling the winds, but it wasn't the same as flying on Toothless. For a start even though the winds could move him pretty fast Toothless was in a whole other league. Toothless flew through the air like an arrow with Hiccup lying flat against the saddle, twitching his metal leg to move the artificial fin in perfect unison with his dragon. It was exhilarating just to watch them and even more so to ride with them.

'So, how's Hufflepuff,' he asked cautiously.

'Oh, most of them are alright. They say they're just worried about me getting bullied but there are a few who think I'm some sort of traitor.'

'A traitor? That's a bit harsh isn't it?'

'Well, it's complicated,' Hiccup tried to explain, 'we Hufflepuffs sort of get looked down on by the other houses, Ravenclaw and Slytherin especially. It's because we don't have any specific requirements for the sorting so we're seen as the loser house were all the dregs end up. The other's think that because I'm hanging out with other houses I'm ashamed to be a Hufflepuff.'

'If it's any consolation the Slytherins didn't really care you were,' Jack said awkwardly as they walked into the courtyard. 'Honestly I think they were giving me some slack after…you know, Pitch Black'

It had been pretty big news at breakfast a couple of days after their first lessons. Jack had come out of the boy's dormitories to see a group of people huddled around a first year girl called Alice Fayefield, he realised she was the girl who had waved to him after he and the others had first visited Toothless. She was crying heavily with great racking sobs shaking her body.

'What's happened?' He asked a boy called Mulcaster who was standing awkwardly to one side.

Mulcaster looked at him angrily, as if to say it wasn't any of Jack's business, before handing him a folded up newspaper. Jack opened it to the front page and read the headline:

**Break out in Azkaban, several dark wizards escape.**

'Her dad was one of the guards, she got a letter this morning,' Mulcaster added simply.

'Oh God, that's…,' Jack said sympathetically, stopping as a name flashed up in the article.

'Pitch Black,' he muttered, turning to the second page to see a moving picture of the dark wizard that had killed his father.

'Yeah he led the breakout, no one knows how though,' Mulcaster said irritably, his breath frosting in front of him.

'Pitch Black,' Jack repeated through gritted teeth, ice spreading over the pages from his fingertips and covering over Black's face, consuming it, 'He got out!'

'What's your problem?' Alice asked wiping her nose as angry heads turned to him from the concerned group.

'He!…he killed my dad too,' Jack said, the flash of ice cold anger that had passed through him faded under the look in Alice's eyes. The same one he'd seen in the mirror after his dad's funeral.

'I'm sorry,' she said half-grudgingly.

'Yeah me too,' he returned sadly, 'I'm going to breakfast. I'll…I'll see you later okay.'

He'd left them at that and by the time he reached the others he was his usual cheerful self, bouncing around and making fun of Merida as if nothing was wrong. He only told them about it later when he had a chance to calm down and sort it through in his head.

They didn't say much, except for Merida who'd said, 'That bastard,' after hearing what Pitch had done. Rapunzel and Merida had sat down next to him and pulled him into a short hug while Hiccup had stood around awkwardly, not sure what to do, but he made up for it later when he took Jack out flying on Toothless for the first time. It was Hiccup's normal way of trying to cheer someone up, he loved flying with Toothless so much he honestly believed that riding with the dragon would lift anyone's spirits, and he was right.

'So what changed?' Hiccup asked curiously, bringing Jack out of his thoughts.

'You remember a couple of days ago when Rapunzel told us she was muggle born, well one of the Slytherins must have overheard because the next day a few people told me to stop spending time with her.'

'Maybe they didn't mean it the way you think,' Hiccup tried to encourage him.

'They called her a mud-blood,' Jack said flatly and that left no room for excuse or exception.

'Those Slytherins are more out of date than us Berkians and we haven't changed since the _Viking_ era,' Hiccup spat angrily to the agreement of Jack.

They spent the rest of the short walk happily insulting all the idiots in their houses until they nearly ran into a group of Slytherins lead by Mulcaster heading into the Great Hall and Jack pulled Hiccup into another corridor before they were seen.

'What's going on?' Hiccup said alarmed.

'Shh, those are some of the Slytherins,' Jack whispered back.

'I didn't think you were the kind of person to hide from bullies.'

'I'm not, what do you say we have a little fun.'

'We're supposed to be meeting up with the girls before dinner.'

'Then let's go get them first, they won't want to miss out on this,' Jack said, an evil grin gracing his face. 'You in?'

'Alright, what have you got in mind?' Hiccup asked, smiling back.

* * *

Half an hour later the Slytherins left through the Hall's double doors and headed outside into the courtyard, arguing amiably over whose quidditch team was the best. That was why they didn't notice the thin line of golden thread stretched out at the bottom step.

As one boys and girls tripped over the thread or each other and landed on the ice covered stone cobbles. Before they knew what was happening, but not before two of them saw the golden thread disappear around a corner, they began to slide along the ice that appeared to be forming a pathway in front of them.

When they'd past out of sight Merida and Rapunzel snuck out from behind the steps, Rapunzel carrying a bundle of her shining hair. Giggling the pair joined the people already hurrying off to see what would happen.

'Could you help me braid my hair when we get there?' Rapunzel asked as they ran down a hill.

The Slytherins had started screaming in panic as they accelerated downhill, some of them spinning or rolling and none of them able to get up. They passed large groups of other students during their descent and were soon being followed by running and cheering children who were eager to watch the show. The Black Lake suddenly stretched out before them and, with a final gut wrenching drop down the last hill; they were thrown into the shallow water at the bank.

They emerged, dripping and spluttering, their robes half covered in mud and slime, and were greeted by a crowd doubling over in laughter. Among them Merida and Rapunzel had to lean on each other just to stay upright, Rapunzel's hair pooling on the ground between them, forgotten.

'You gotta be careful this time of year. It's getting icy,' Jack drawled cheerfully, crouching on the top of his crook while a smiling Hiccup leaned on it with his arms crossed.

The Slytherins glared at him, already putting two and two together, as they stumbled back up the hills, squelching with each step.

* * *

Later that night the four sat on the Grand Staircase as they waited out the curfew that would force them to return to their common rooms. They were celebrating with a round of _Bertie Bott fishing_ which had become a traditional game for them whenever they had something to celebrate, although Hiccup had to be bribed with chocolate frogs whenever they played because he had so far lost every game.

'Cherry'

'Walnut'

'Garlic'

'Vomit'

Merida and Jack laughed at the other two; Rapunzel was washing her mouth out with water while Hiccup, who'd got the vomit flavoured bean, was gagging silently.

'I hate this game,' Hiccup moaned unhappily.

'Shut up, we give you a chocolate frog for each bean you eat,' Rapunzel replied happily. Strangely, Bertie Bott's every flavour beans had become her favourite sweet and she was usually the one who started the game, seemingly enjoying the gamble that eating each bean was.

'Well, I think we all deserve a congratulations,' Jack said happily, high on victory as the staircase began to move from floor to floor.

'Here, here,' Merida cheered happily, 'that'll show those Slytherins ta tell ye not ta spend time with us.'

'You don't want to do that to the rest of our houses do you?' Hiccup asked nervously.

'Nah, they deserved it more,' Jack replied looking at his watch. 'Sorry guys, looks like our time's up,'

'Ugh, why can't curfew be longer?' Rapunzel asked as she stood up.

'I guess we do need some time apart,' Hiccup said sensibly as headed down the steps.

'Wouldn't want ta get bored of each other too soon,' Merida joked as she headed up the flight of stairs they had been sitting on.

'Like you could ever get bored of me,' Jack called after her as he jumped from the steps and floated on icy winds to the bottom floor, making them all smile.

* * *

The next day after breakfast the four headed out onto the training grounds where Madame Hooch stood with two lines of brooms waiting for them.

'I'll see you guys up there,' Hiccup said, turning down the road to Gobber's hut.

The first flying lesson had been greatly anticipated by the students, especially Merida and Jack who were both quidditch fans. They'd half-ran, half-dragged the other two towards the grounds for the first lesson and ended up arriving fifteen minutes early.

Hiccup had only gone to one lesson to prove he could fly up and down on the broom, as per the agreement his father had made with Headmaster North, and then he had been allowed to ride Toothless during the lessons. As the others had grown more adept at flying Madame Hooch had allowed the class to fly around more freely as she hovered higher in the air to keep an eye on them. Since then the four had spent every lesson flying around the grounds and over the lake.

'Bet you a galleon I can get above the astronomy tower first Dunbroch!' Jack yelled running to a broom.

'Ye're on Frost,' Merida responded, a broom already in hand.

Rapunzel laughed at the two excitedly rising into the air as she walked to a broom, held out her hand and commanded, 'Up.'

'Ready Pascal?' She asked to the quivering chameleon wrapped in her blue and bronze scarf. Pascal had never liked flying.

She lifted them of the ground and tilted the head of the broom up to rise faster and meet Merida and Jack who were descending from their race, Merida angrily handing a galleon over to a smug Jack.

'Are you two done?' She asked as she levelled out with them.

'Yep,' Jack said pleasantly while Merida grunted behind him.

They flew down towards the edge of the dark forest near Gobber's hut and, although they had been warned not to fly over it by Hooch, Jack and Merida persisted in a daredevil game of flying as close as they could to the trees without passing over them. They were joined by Hiccup and Toothless who rose up in a black flash to bank and glide serenely next to them, the dragon hardly beating his wings.

'Hi Toothless,' Rapunzel cried across to the dragon who purred in greeting and gave a gummy smile.

The four swooped down in an arc that took them over the black lake, their scarfs flying back in the winds, except for Jack who didn't wear a scarf even in the coldest weather.

Jack and Merida began to race each other across the grounds and lake that surrounded the school while Rapunzel sat, happily gliding at her own pace as she watched. Jack and Merida were urging there brooms faster and faster, seeing who could beat the other in terms of pure speed. Suddenly Hiccup and Toothless zoomed between them in a lightning fast blur, forcing them to veer off and slow down.

'Show off!' Merida yelled after them as they sped ahead although she was smiling.

Hiccup loved to fly Toothless; it was easily the thing he looked forward to most during the day. He clicked his metal leg in a sequence that came naturally to him now, in turn Toothless angled his wings to correspond with his tail fins and they sped faster over the Black Lake. This was what Hiccup loved the most, feeling his and Toothless' movements blend seamlessly together to move through the air. And what _speed_, the nightfury was the fastest breed of dragon alive and Gods knew it never got boring.

They spent the rest of the lesson flying and chasing each other across the grounds while Madame Hooch screamed at them to slow down and stop messing about. At the end of the lesson they all landed back on the training pitch while Hiccup flew back to Gobber's hut, their faces blushing from the cold and wind. Jack's hair had messed up in the wind and was sticking out in all directions while Rapunzel's and Merida's remained the same, Rapunzel's braid being too thick to change and Merida's hair was already in a state of pre-messed.

'Thanks Professor,' they said in unison as they stacked their brooms in her arms and hurried back to the front entrance.

'Do you lot never slow down!?' The professor's voice bellowed after them.

As usual they all ran off to their common rooms to gather their charms textbooks for the next lesson. Rapunzel ran up the staircase that would take her to Ravenclaw tower until a grinding sound told her the stairs had chosen that moment to move over towards the astronomy tower.

'Great Pascal, looks like we're going to have to make a detour,' she said glumly to the chameleon who chirped in exasperation.

They walked up the rest of the stairs and into the corridor that led away from it, this had happened before so Rapunzel knew she could take a turning on the right that would take her to the spiral staircase to Ravenclaw tower.

'Locomotor mortis!'

Rapunzel's legs snapped together as the leg-locker curse took effect and fell forward, Pascal chirping in surprise and horror as he tumbled from her shoulder and scampered away into the shadows.

She twisted around to see the group of Slytherins the four had pranked the other day, as well as a larger group behind them that she didn't know, advancing down the corridor. The lead member, a second year boy called Mulcaster, had his wand drawn and was presumably the one who'd cursed her.

'Hey mud-blood,' Mulcaster said as they surrounded her.

'What do you want?' Rapunzel asked, trying to keep herself sitting upright.

'Want? Oh nothing much. We're just curious whether you knew about what happened to us yesterday because _we_ know it was your hair that tripped us up,' Mulcaster replied nonchalantly, although anger edged his last words.

'At first we thought you'd tripped us intentionally but then we realised you probably hadn't noticed it had fallen out of its braid. So we want to help you out, we know you don't like to cut your hair but even you must be struggling with it now, otherwise that unfortunate situation would never have happened.'

'So what we're going to do,' another Slytherin said behind him, taking something from her robe pocket, 'is give you a quick haircut.'

At those words the Slytherins each took out a pair of scissors from their robes and advanced towards her. Rapunzel shuffled backwards and started to fumble in her robes in panic. Then she felt a Slytherin behind her pull at her braid, causing it to break and allow the golden strands to fall around behind her.

'NO! GET AWAY FROM MY HAIR!' Rapunzel roared angrily, pulling her wand out from her robes in a single furious movement.

The Slytherins had chosen to attack Rapunzel because they'd always assumed she was the weak one of the group. They decided not to get back at Hiccup because, although they also thought of him as a weaker member, they'd seen him riding his pet nightfury around the grounds and worried he'd set it on them. Merida and Jack were out of the question, the Slytherins had seen them duel each other in Defence Against the Dark Arts, a subject they both excelled in. Jack had his weird ice magic to add to the spells they were taught and Merida moved and fought with well-trained muscles and an incredible ferocity that made people next to her flinch.

Rapunzel on the other hand had always proved pretty bad at performing jinxes and curses, they were the only spells she couldn't get the hang of, much to the despair of Professor Maximus as he watched over her and Hiccup duelling.

They'd always seen her as a cheerful, smiling girl who'd been very gentle and kind and had never really shown any negative emotion to people.

The Rapunzel in front of them now, however, did not look like that. Her eyes burned with anger and a terrifying scowl lit her face, even though her legs were still useless the Slytherins instinctively backed away from this new look.

'Wingardium Leviosa!' She cried, causing the two Slytherins behind her to rise swiftly to the ceiling before they had a chance to react.

'Lumos solem,' she continued, pointing her wand at Mulcaster who had raised his wand to cast a spell. The flash of light caught him of guard and he stumbled back, his hands clawing at his blinded eyes.

'Verdimillious tria!'

A third spell sent green sparks dancing across the room that should have merely stunned their five targets but instead also flung them down the corridor.

She began to desperately prepare spells and roll out the way simultaneously as the Slytherins she hadn't hit raised their wands for a counter strike.

'Rapunzel!' A voice cried from the staircase, and suddenly the others, led by Pascal, were racing into the corridor their wands and staff at the ready.

'Flippendo!' Merida cried as she neared, flinging Slytherins into a wall.

'Expelliamus, Tantalus Talentegra' a red light fired from Hiccup's wand disarmed another who then began to dance uncontrollably until he slipped on the suddenly icy floor.

Jack twirled his staff in a series of movements that sent icy hexes at his housemates, trapping them in ice or blinding them with snow.

This gave Rapunzel enough of a chance to use the counter spell for her legs and stand up to run and join the others who had formed into a tight huddle, their wands pointing towards the remaining Slytherins.

'So we finally see your true colours Frost,' Mulcaster said menacingly, his eyes red and watering.

'Green and silver, same as yours,' Jack replied angrily, 'Mine are just cleaner.'

The Slytherins raised their wands, preparing to strike again, and the four readied themselves to counter.

'ENOUGH!' A voice boomed, making them all turn to see Headmaster North standing in the entrance to the corridor, his red robes making him look like a vengeful warrior about to join the fray.

He strode towards the now cowering students and waved his wand angrily, making them all flinch. Instead of some terrible punishing curse that they all expected the only thing that happened was that the levitated Slytherins fell to the floor with a thump!

'Into my office,' he commanded angrily at the crowd, 'Now.'

* * *

**Author's note: So, my first real fight scene. I hope you enjoyed it (even if it was a little short).**

**If any of you guys are wondering about Rapunzel's duelling style this note is mainly here to tell you about it. Essentially after watching Tangled I came up with the idea that Rapunzel should have an unusual but effective fighting style (similar to her frying pan in the movie). This is why she can't use jinxes and hexes (the typical attacking spells), instead I plan for her to use her mastery in Charms and other magic to make up for it and make her a very unpredictable opponent.**

**What do you guys think? I hope your still enjoying the story :)**


	5. The Search

**The Search**

The four sat in a side room to the Headmasters office, talking animatedly about what had happened.

'Did you see Merida blast that guy across the room,' Jack said excitedly as he bounced up and down on his chair, 'I swear the wall behind him cracked.'

'Hey ye don't mess with the Dunbrochs,' Merida boasted happily as she helped Rapunzel re-braid her hair, 'We're descended from a long line o' magical warriors.'

'I'm sorry I got you guys into this,' Rapunzel said for the hundredth time, 'I shouldn't have started it.'

'You didn't start it, those Slytherins did,' Hiccup reminded her reassuringly.

'When we arrived they were surroundin' ye,' Merida said angrily. 'Good work taking them down by the way. I could see the flashes from the staircase.'

'How did you find me anyway?'

'Pascal found Hiccup and me and told us to follow him,' Jack told her, still bouncing.

'I saw the Slytherins follow ye into the corridor and met the others on the way up,' Merida said in unison.

'You guys were amazing, but I shouldn't have used magic, that's why we're getting in trouble,' Rapunzel said, switching from positive to negative.

'Then again _they_ were threatening to cut my hair. Yeah, they should be lucky I let them off so easy,' she continued, switching back to positive or at least angrier and less negative.

The other three all smiled at her knowingly, they'd grown used to these strange mood swings she sometimes went through when stressed.

The door opened, making the four jump as they had half-forgotten where they were, to reveal Professor North whose large body filled the frame.

'You four come in, I want to hear you're stories' side.'

They trudged in after the professor, glaring back at the Slytherins who were filing past them into the room they'd just left. They walked into the main office where North's desk sat in the middle of a room with rows of previous headmasters lining the walls, currently sleeping. The last row ended slightly shorter than the others the final portrait being of a woman with a stern face who had Minerva McGonagall inscribed beneath her. Professor North guided them to his desk and pointed to four chairs seated in front of it, which they sat in mutely.

'I've contacted your heads of house,' he informed them gruffly, 'they'll arrive once their classes have ended. Ah, speak of the devils.'

At his words the door behind the group opened and Professors Toothiana, Whittler, Bunnymund and Mansnoozie walked or flew in. They walked around the four and stood in line behind North, none of them looked happy.

'So now everyone's here, tell us your version of the story,' North continued calmly, settling back in his seat.

'How do we know you're going to listen? You chose to talk to the others first,' Jack blurted before he could help himself.

The other three turned to him incredulously from their seats while the teachers bristled angrily.

'Jack, what the hell?' Merida hissed at him.

'You should learn some respect for authority boy,' Bunnymund growled.

Bunnymund had never been fond of Jack since the boy's arrival at the school and Jack's disregard for rules and constant pranks had done nothing to lighten Bunnymund's feelings towards him. Bunnymund was also the Herbology professor at Hogwarts – much to the surprise of many students who had assumed he taught Care for Magical Creatures but were reminded that just because Bunnymund _was _one it didn't mean that he knew anything about other species.

At their first Herbology lesson Jack and Bunnymund's dislike for one another intensified when all the plants Jack handled would later die, or at least go into hibernation, whenever he touched them with his 'winter fingers'. Since then Jack had been forced to wear thick gloves in lessons and he and Bunnymund would constantly share hateful looks at each other.

'Now, now. There's no need to worry Jack, we will judge with no bias,' Professor North said, cutting over the others in his thick Russian accent.

'I was the one who started the fight; the others only got dragged into it afterwards. It wasn't their fault,' Rapunzel spoke up suddenly to the evident surprise of the teachers.

'_You_ started it Miss Solaris,' North asked shocked while a question mark appeared over Mansnoozie's head. 'Why?'

'They were trying to cut my hair professor,' Rapunzel replied quietly looking at him in a conspiratorial way that the others didn't understand.

Images flashed rapidly above Mansnoozie again and several times the four could see a pair of scissors made in sand appear, snipping silently before being replaced again.

'Yes Sandy, there were many scissors at the scene,' North replied thoughtfully, 'and a few Slytherins were carrying some without explanation.'

'While that does give credit to your story I'm still curious as to _why_ they wanted to cut your hair Rapunzel,' Toothiana said in her usual quick manner, leaning forward to inspect the students as she did so.

'I don't suppose it would have anything to do with the fact those same students had a nasty accident yesterday did it?'

The four looked guiltily at one another but didn't say anything as the looks from the professors indicated that they didn't have to, the teachers already knew.

'They called Rapunzel a mud-blood,' Hiccup muttered angrily, 'They had no right to call her that.'

There was a gasp beside him from Rapunzel and Merida who Jack and Hiccup had decided not to tell the specific reason they'd chosen the Slytherins as a target. There were similar expressions of surprise on the teachers' faces, with the exception of Whittler whose face had gone eerily blank.

'That is a very serious accusation Hiccup,' North said sternly, 'I hope you have evidence to prove it.'

'It was me who overheard it sir,' Jack took over, 'They called her it to my face in the common room, except for that though I have no proof.'

The headmaster nodded in understanding and turned to Professor Whittler.

'Do you think there is any grounds to Jack's claim Ursa?'

'Well there've always been a few students whose families haven't moved with the times,' Whittler said grudgingly. 'The prefects and I always get it out o' their system in the end though,' she added with satisfaction.

'Hmm, very well, bring the others in and we shall sort this out,' North ordered after a few more minutes silent deliberation.

The Slytherins were brought back in and walked around to stand behind the chairs the four had been sitting on a moment ago but had now left to stand further to the side, unwilling to turn their backs on the Slytherins.

'After hearing both sides of the argument I have decided to punish all of you,' North said when they had all settled and raised his hands to stop the tide of protests. 'It is against school rules to use magic on fellow students in the corridors and you all broke it.'

'So,' he continued, 'I am deducting fifty points from your houses…each.'

At that there was a large sound of protest from the Slytherins and, surprisingly, Jack.

'Hang on Professor,' he said hurriedly, 'if you do that Slytherin loses all its house points, we won't have anything left.'

'Yeah, it's not fair if _they_ get off easier,' said Mulcaster who hadn't realised he was agreeing with Jack until it was too late.

'And whose fault is that?' Professor Whittler snapped angrily. 'Ye all break the rules ye all pay the price.'

'Furthermore,' North continued calmly as if nothing was happening, 'you will receive extra punishment from your house masters, which we shall be discussing. You may all leave now.'

He ushered them all out the door which was tricky because the larger group of Slytherins were unwilling to stand close to the four which meant they all ended up crowding the stairway while the four were grudgingly forced into a corner. As he started to turn back into his office he stopped as if remembering something and turned back.

'Make sure I don't catch any of you again. If I do you will not get off so lightly,' he threatened sweetly before closing the door behind him.

'Thanks for that Frost,' Mulcaster sneered across the room, 'there's no way Slytherin's going to make up those points.'

'Why are you blaming him, _you're_ the one who attacked me,' Rapunzel retorted, 'pretty poorly I might add.'

'Shut it Mud-blood,' Mulcaster jeered back, 'It's not like you'd have won that fight if your other losers hadn't interrupted.'

'Ha! Ye've got ta be kiddin' me. You were the ones who attacked her and you were too cowardly to do it alone,' Merida returned heatedly.

'Yeah and she still kicked your asses,' Jack added proudly.

'Just don't cross us again,' Mulcaster said, trying to sound menacing but failing entirely.

The Slytherins began to walk down the stairs into the corridor outside, giving the four, and especially Jack, nasty looks as they passed. Soon the entrance room was empty save the four.

'Well that went badly,' Merida said moodily. 'Ugh, I can just tell Toothiana's going ta have me sorting out old school records; she knows I hate ta sit in dusty rooms.'

'Let's just forget it,' Hiccup said forlornly, 'Do you guys want to get lunch.'

''m not hungry,' Jack mumbled looking angrily at the floor and gripping his staff so tightly that his already pale knuckles were turning whiter.

'Me neither,' Rapunzel agreed, ignoring the sounds of protest from Pascal. 'Hey, you know what we have next?' She said, suddenly cheery again as they made their way down the staircase.

'Transfiguration,' Jack answered warily, already suspecting where Rapunzel was going with this.

'Exactly, so why don't Merida and Hiccup and I give you a quick lesson. I know you're still not getting the spells right,' Rapunzel continued, winking at the other two.

'You'll never take me alive!' Jack suddenly yelled gleefully and took off; leaving little ice trails with his staff to slip up Rapunzel who was running after him.

Merida and Hiccup looked at each other as the two hurried down the corridor and shrugged their shoulders as if to say, _we might as well_, before chasing after them. Hiccup jumping over the icy traps while Merida simply skidded along them.

* * *

Back in the headmaster's office the teachers sat in a worried circle.

'You know, I never thought it would happen this fast,' Toothiana said who was sitting down rather than hovering in mid-air, her usually vibrating wings barely moving which was a clear sign she was worried.

'They met on the _first_ day, I mean what are the odds,' Bunnymund said as he rubbed his eyes with a large paw.

'If only the hat had put 'em in the same house,' Whittler added despairingly, 'at least then they wouldn't be causin' as much trouble between the houses, ye know how the younger years are.'

'Not that I don't like young Frost in my house mind ye, he's a funny lad,' she continued hurriedly.

'A menace more like,' Bunnymund stated angrily, 'Always freezing the floors to slip people up or causing snowstorms in the middle of corridors that cover up classroom doors, he's a complete…'

'Nevertheless,' North interrupted quickly, 'it has happened, they found each other, and we were told they would find unity through separation. I believe by separation it meant the houses, which means they are already fulfilling it.'

They all looked around to Sandy who was producing images quickly above his head, including a silhouette they recognised easily.

'You're right Sandy; I'm afraid he'll get involved sooner as well. We have much less time than we realised,' North agreed.

'Are you sure we shouldn't tell them?' Bunnymund asked, 'It's wrong to keep them in the dark when they're in so much danger.'

'I know Bunny, but we were told they _mustn't_ know until they turn fifteen, we can't disobey it if they are to get through this.'

'Perhaps we should start trainin' 'em now and give 'em a head start,' Whittler said thoughtfully, 'That wouldn't be breakin' the rules.'

A question mark formed above Mansnoozie's head.

'We'd have to explain why we're training them though,' Tooth reminded her, 'and anyway, Madame Pomfrey has refused to teach Rapunzel until second year.'

'Not unless we disguise it as somethin' else, say…their punishments,' Whittler replied with a clever grin.

'What have you got in mind?' Bunnymund asked curiously.

'Well first I'll use the old red-glow ointment trick when I tell him. It gives ye this lovely intimidatin' lightin' that always gets to 'em and then I'll say…' Whittler started, leaning forward conspiratorially.

'Perhaps you could skip to the plan,' North suggested as they leaned in to listen to what she had to say.

* * *

Dinner in the great hall that night was not a pleasant one for the four.

The Slytherins pretended like Jack didn't exist or would stare hatefully at him and mutter something to their neighbour. They'd forced him to sit right at the end of the table on the edge of the bench and made sure his end had little to no good food. He sat, silently seething, while the Slytherins that had attacked Rapunzel sat in the centre of attention, answering questions about what had happened with stories that contradicted each other as the students added exaggerations and lies to each retelling.

The other three weren't having it any better. Rumours had already spread about the fight and none of them held the four in a good light. This meant their houses now viewed them with open suspicion, wondering if Jack would be the only one willing to turn his wand on fellow house members.

As such the four spent that dinner sitting in a quiet bubble while the noise of their tables echoed around them. Finally Merida had had enough.

'Oh for pity's sake,' she muttered loudly. She stood up angrily and grabbed an apple off a silver plate before stalking over to the Ravenclaw table. She found Rapunzel close to the centre; the Ravenclaws were a little more accepting of her but if she tried to join a conversation they would turn away and ignore her again after only speaking a few awkward words.

Tapping Rapunzel on the shoulder she said, 'Go get Hiccup, if this lot don't want anythin' to do with us then we'll find our own place to eat.'

Rapunzel nodded in agreement and rose gratefully from her seat to hurry towards the Hufflepuff table. Merida on the other hand turned to the Slytherins and Jack. A loud muttering began along all the tables as the houses saw the two girls fanning out across the hall. The Slytherins at the table sat up warily as Merida grabbed Jack and repeated what she'd said to Rapunzel.

'Great idea,' he said loudly, smiling as he stepped away from the table and 'accidently' knocked a few people with his staff, 'I don't know why we didn't think of it sooner.'

The muttering grew louder as the four joined each other at the Hall's doors; people were now actively staring in bewilderment, including the teachers.

Together the four walked slowly out the door, nonchalantly turned a corner and, when they were out of sight, started running to get as far away as possible.

'So…what now?' Hiccup panted later when they'd run far enough away.

'Don't ask me,' Merida said gleefully, drunk on adrenalin, 'I only got this far.'

'Wait. Are you telling me you dragged us out of the Hall without knowing another way to get food?' Rapunzel asked incredulously, 'What am I saying, _of course_ you did.'

'We can worry about it tomorrow,' Jack said confidently as they started to walk down a corridor to find somewhere to spend the rest of the evening. 'We'll figure something out, and if we don't we can always live off packets of Bertie Bott's every flavour beans.'

'Oh Gods what have I signed up to,' Hiccup wailed comically.

'Don't worry Hiccup,' Jack said, cheerfully wrapping his arm around the boy's shoulder, 'We'll be sure to bankrupt ourselves to get you a good supply of incentives.'

'Yeah, ye luckless freak,' Merida joked at their side as she bit into her apple.

'Speaking of which, who'd like a game of Bertie Bott's fishing,' Rapunzel said as she brought a packet of beans from out her pocket.

'No!'

'Aw, come on Hiccup ye know ye want to, dad just sent me a new batch of chocolate frogs this mornin'.'

'Alright…fine.'

'Yes!'

'How many cards do you have now anyway?'

* * *

It was a fortnight later and the Christmas holidays were looming which meant the time for the four to separate was drawing closer and they still hadn't found anywhere new to eat.

Rapunzel sat in front of a large stack of books in the library, Pascal sitting on the table between her arms. She spent a lot of her free time there when she wasn't hanging out with the others, reading as many books as she could carry to the table.

The book currently open in front of her was a large Atlas. She kept flipping between pages, pointing to areas that she thought were interesting to Pascal. Gothel had never kept an atlas in the tower so as to prevent Rapunzel growing too interested in the outside world. Now that she was out of the tower Rapunzel had been trying to catch up on many things that she had never experienced and on the top of the list was seeing the world.

'Look Pascal, it's Berk,' Rapunzel said as she turned a page onto the map of a small island of the northern coasts of Scotland.

'Wow, so this must be where he found Toothless,' she continued, pointing towards a clump of forest away from the village, 'he talks about it so much I could find it with my eyes closed.'

'Yeah, he does like to talk about their little hole in the ground,' Jack said, walking up behind her, staff resting on his shoulder.

He slumped down onto the table, sitting in his usual slouched position with one bare foot resting on his crook.

'I think it's sweet,' Rapunzel replied, flipping through the atlas, 'I mean the story about him and Toothless drawing together was _so_ cute.'

'Yeah, cute. Anyway, are we any further along in finding a place to eat?' Jack said, switching to a topic that had been on everyone's mind.

* * *

The four had been searching for a new source of food since the night they stormed out without much success. They originally had tried to find somewhere they could make food, Rapunzel had wanted to bake a cake or a few cookies for weeks, but their search had been fruitless.

While they searched they had to sneak into the Great Hall when it was nearly empty to gather whatever food they could and they needed Pascal to carry plates from the table at dinner when the Hall was too full to get into without being seen.

Finally, after another failed search, Rapunzel had said, 'Okay, this clearly isn't working. Why don't we just look for whatever kitchens feed the Great Hall?'

'I didn't think there were kitchens,' Merida said with surprise, 'I just thought the food was magicked into existence.'

'I thought so too, nut I looked it up,' Rapunzel explained, 'the necessary magic to make a small amount of food appear out of thin air is very difficult alone. I don't believe the staff _combined_ could make so much food appear, no matter how good they are.'

'Which means there must be a kitchen where the food is cooked,' Hiccup finished.

'Great,' Jack had cheered happily. 'How do we find it?'

'I have no idea.'

'_Great.'_

* * *

'I think it must be somewhere beneath the Hall itself so the food can rise up to the tables, that would be an easier charm,' Rapunzel explained in the present. 'This atlas has some pretty detailed drawings of Hogwarts as well as maps and by the looks of it there should be an entrance to a room beneath the Hall on the ground floor.'

'Hiccup's common room is on the ground floor right? Let's go and ask him if he's seen anything useful,' Jack said standing up, 'He and Merida are getting their post right now.'

'Alright, let me just put these books back,' Rapunzel agreed, gathering the books in her arms and placing them back in the right spot on their shelf while Jack hopped around impatiently.

Finally they set off for the Owlery in the West tower, it took them slightly longer than it should have because they had to hide in a corner to avoid Peeves as he whizzed down the corridor, setting of firecrackers he'd stolen from a sixth year.

They climbed up the spiral stairs and into the circular stone room that served as the Owlery. It was cold and drafty because none of the small windows around the wall had glass in them. The oncoming winter had meant that the room was colder than usual and ice was beginning to set on the straw covered floor, forcing Rapunzel to step carefully so as not to fall while Jack walked on the ice as if it wasn't there.

They found Hiccup and Merida at the topmost floor of the Owlery. Hiccup was feeding a small kipper to Tiny who was sitting on his shoulder while Merida attached a message to the leg of Angus, her black and white great-eared owl.

'Hey you two,' Merida said as Angus flew from her arm out the window. 'What are ye doin' here?'

'We've got a new idea about the kitchens,' Jack said proudly.

'_We?_' Rapunzel asked incredulously, '_I_ came up with the idea. I think it might be near to your common room Hiccup, oh fine Jack that bit was your idea. Can you think of anything that might help?'

'I don't know,' Hiccup answered as he scratched Tiny between his spiky ears, 'We sometimes see the teachers pass by the common room, which is weird because that corridor has a dead end.'

'Are ye telling me that Hiccup may have been sleeping a few feet away from what we've searched weeks for?' Merida asked as she tried to dislodge an owl feather that had lodged itself in her tangled hair.

They all stood quietly for a moment as they let that thought sink in. Eventually Rapunzel broke the awkward silence by saying slowly, 'I think we should go and check it out first before we get our hopes up.'

Nodding in agreement they left the Owlery after Hiccup let Tiny crawl back into his favourite spot, the small dragon slept curled in a hole in the wall rather than on a perch like the owls. The four sped quickly down the spiral stairs, weaved through different corridors and descended more steps until they reached the corridor where the Hufflepuff common room could be found.

Fortunately there weren't many Hufflepuffs walking around at that time of day so the corridor was free of any curious eyes that might follow them as they hurried to its end. They arrived at the dead end only to find a painting of a fruit bowl and nothing else.

'Well, so much for that idea,' Hiccup said despairingly.

'That's not good,' Rapunzel said distantly.

'Yeah, I really thought you had something there Rapunzel,' Jack agreed sadly.

'No, I mean the painting; it doesn't look like it's been treated as well as most of the others in the castle. Look, the area of canvas around the pear is more worn than the rest.'

'I don't see anythin',' Merida said as she squinted at the painting.

'Trust me.'

Rapunzel stepped closer to the painting to get a better look. To the uninitiated eye the canvas did indeed look perfectly normal but she could see that the fabric of the pear's side had been worn down slowly. She reached out her hand and stroked her finger gently along the damaged area of the fruit.

Instantly the pear began to squirm and shake with laughter, making Rapunzel jump back as the painting swung backwards to reveal a hidden room beyond. Hiccup stepped forward to look in and was greeted by the busy noise and commotion of a kitchen as small creatures whirled past, carrying plates and trays of freshly cooked food across the large room. He stumbled in suddenly as the other three pushed him forward to get a look and the small creatures stopped in their tracks to stare at the intruders.

'Um…Hi,' Hiccup said nervously, intimidated by the hundreds of stares bearing down on him.

Many of the house-elves, for that's what they were, shrugged and carried about their work. A few, however, broke off from the constantly moving crowd and, smiling delightedly.

One asked in a high pitched voice, 'Is there any way in which we may serve the ladies and gentlemen?'

'Uh, you're house-elves right?' Jack asked, still trying to take in recent events.

'That is correct sir, are you sure you would not care for some drink? Or food?' The house-elf replied, still smiling.

'Sounds good,' Merida said happily to the house-elf's delight.

'We don't want to get in your way though,' Rapunzel said hurriedly as a team of house-elves brought in a round table and four chairs and began to set it with silver plates. 'You must be busy preparing dinner for upstairs.'

'We house-elves enjoy serving,' explained the elf that had spoken to them first, 'it is our honest pleasure to assist you in whatever you may need.'

He motioned for them to sit and soon the four were brought an exquisite selection of the very best food the elves could offer. They all quickly filled their plates and began to eat contentedly while the elf stood beside them and the other elves rushed around, setting plates on the five tables that mirrored the Great Hall above.

'What's your name,' Hiccup asked the elf suddenly as he looked up from his shepherd's pie.

'Grindl Master,' the elf replied humbly, bowing his head slightly in acknowledgment.

'You don't have to call me that, call me Hiccup,' Hiccup replied and was followed by the others as they introduced themselves.

'As you wish Master Hiccup,'

'So Grindl, are all of you house-elves servants for Professor North or do you just work here?' Jack asked curiously as he noticed that many of the elves wore at least a sock or some other small garment of clothing along with their usual rags, Grindl himself was wearing a pair of worn gloves and a very small scarf.

'We house-elves are now _employed_ by Hogwarts. It used to be that we served the Headmasters as unpaid servants but through the work of Hermione Granger in the Ministry of Magic we were all offered the chance for freedom. Many of our more traditional brethren were resistant at first to this idea, we like to serve our masters and we never asked to be made free but, over time, we learned we could be free and yet still work as before, only now we are paid in whatever clothes the teachers can give,' Grindl told them happily as he fingered his old scarf.

'_I_ chose freedom right away; I had always hoped to know the feeling of independence,' the elf told them wistfully.

The four continued eating as they listened to Grindl's stories about the lives of the house-elves while the food of the Great Hall vanished from the kitchen tables, presumable to appear at their house table counterparts. Eventually they were also joined by the house-elves who sat down at the large tables for their own more meagre meals, except Grindl who asked modestly if he may sit with them.

The four sat happily with him and the other elves, listening and talking to Grindl about whatever subjects they strayed onto. They spent every meal there for the rest of the year, arriving just after the meals were served above so as not to disturb the elves too much and staying for as long as they could until lessons began. Later they would all look back to that meal and realise it was probably the happiest they'd had since the opening feast.

* * *

**Author's note: Hi guys. If any of you are wondering about the timeline in this universe the four have arrived at Lily Potters seventh year. This means the year is currently 2026 (and the iPhone 18 is not going down well :P). I don't plan for the golden trio to make an appearance in the story (although you never know) but I may make a few references to them every now and then.**

**Well till next time, thanks for reading :)**


	6. The Detentions

**The Detentions**

The rest of the school term passed by quickly for the four, attending lessons and avoiding or sometimes pranking the houses without getting caught became a routine. They became experts at sabotage and pranks and life at Hogwarts grew bearable again. And then it all ended as the Christmas holidays arrived.

The four sat together again in the train carriage and shared whichever presents they'd been able to scrounge.

Merida was given a batch of home baked cookies from Rapunzel who'd baked them in the kitchens with Grindl and the other elves. Hiccup had made her a leather quiver that was better fitted to her than her old one and Jack handed over a large bag of cauldron cakes.

They all pitched in to give Rapunzel a new set of paints and brushes as well as two new books on advanced charms and magical history.

Jack received a bag of instant darkness powder from Hiccup, several packs of chocolate frogs from Merida and a portrait from Rapunzel where she painted him flying a broom over the Black Lake.

Finally, Hiccup got a new sketchpad from Merida, new charcoal and pencils from Rapunzel. And Jack gave him a new set of tools for blacksmithing that he'd overheard Hiccup talking to Gobber about.

Christmas itself passed by in a blur; the four all regaled their parents with stories of Hogwarts and the others. They told all the weird and wonderful things about their friends; Hiccup's dragon, Rapunzel's hair, Jack's staff, Merida's skill at archery and swordsmanship and everything else they could think of.

Merida was greeted with joy and congratulations from her parents for making Gryffindor and spent Christmas morning teaching the triplets how to fight with the wooden swords their dad had bought them.

Hiccup was given an awkward congratulation from his father for being the first Berkian Hufflepuff, 'Always got ta be the first, don't ye Hiccup,' he'd said as he gave Hiccup another slap on the back.

Rapunzel was greeted with wonder from her muggle parents who asked her all kinds of questions about the wizarding world as they knew less than she did. She shared with them all the stories of her lessons and promised to demonstrate her powers when she was legally old enough.

Jack spent much of Christmas taking his sister out ice skating on the lake which he made sure was always thick with ice. He also entertained his mother in whatever way he could to keep her mind off Pitch Black's escape and helped her to serve the Christmas dinner that year.

None of the four mentioned their rejection by their houses; they didn't want their parents to worry.

* * *

Now they were sitting back in the History of Magic classroom, listening to the droning voice of Professor Cuthbert Binns the only ghost teacher in the school. The old ghost did nothing in his classes but give endless and dull lectures, droning on about whichever topic they were studying without any enthusiasm or emotion of any kind.

Hiccup and Jack were playing a surreptitious game of magical hangman, where the man actually walks up the gallows, in a desperate attempt to not die of boredom. Currently Jack was winning three games to one but Hiccup was trying to take back the lead by using Berkian words.

'Snogletogg! That's not a word!' Jack hissed angrily at him.

'Sure it is; it's Berk's version of Christmas,' Hiccup replied smugly, 'That's three to two by the way.'

'No fair Haddock!'

Merida was sitting next to them, her head, resting on her textbook, was barely visible under her tangled red hair but the occasional snore could be heard from beneath it.

Surprisingly Rapunzel was sleeping too, using her crossed arms as a pillow while Pascal lay curled in her braid. What was more surprising, and irritating, for the three was that Rapunzel actually got good marks in tests and on homework even though she had slept through every lesson since the first.

'It's because she reads so much,' Merida mumbled to the others sleepily as they left the classroom, 'she learns all about it outside the lesson.'

'She'll probably know more than Binns by the end of the year,' Hiccup said moodily, he'd lost the game against Jack eventually.

'Don't look so sad Hiccup,' Jack said happily as Rapunzel caught them up, rubbing her eyes. 'It's the first quidditch game today, Hufflepuff verses Slytherin.'

'We better hurry then,' Merida said, excitedly pulling Hiccup and Rapunzel after Jack and her. 'We don't want ta miss the first game.'

The four hurried down the corridors and parted to drop off their books in their common rooms. They also grabbed their house scarfs to wear at the stadium and met back outside the castle.

'Come on Jack, you _have_ to need your scarf now,' Rapunzel said, her voice slightly muffled as her head was wrapped tightly in her own blue and bronze scarf.

Jack walked with his scarf hanging from his shoulders but not wrapped around his neck. He smiled at her as he walked alongside the gravel path on the frozen grass, the earth now too cold to be mud.

'I'm only bringing it along for the house colours, we all did agree that quidditch would be the one thing we supported our houses in,' he said as he twirled the scarf, 'My winter magic stops me from getting cold no matter how low it is, pretty _cool_ huh?'

The three groaned at Jack's bad pun as they reached the quidditch pitch. They could already hear the roaring of the houses from the raised towers that dotted each corner but were stopped however by the heads of house standing in front of the entranceway.

'I don't know where ye think yer goin',' Whittler said pleasantly.

'Aren't we allowed to watch the match?' Hiccup asked worried.

'No, I'm afraid you'll be missing the quidditch matches this year,' Toothiana replied.

'You're detentions have been organised to spread over the rest of the year and they just happen to clash with every quidditch game this year,' Bunnymund continued happily.

'What! But Professor,' Merida pleaded to Toothiana. Quidditch was her and Jack's favourite sport and she couldn't believe they were being forced to miss it.

'No arguments, you'll have plenty of time to watch the games next year,' Toothiana said in a surprisingly stern manner.

'So, if that's settled, Jack yer're ta work with Professor Maximus, I'd hurry if I were you he'll be gettin' impatient,' Whittler said, cheerily shooing Jack off.

'Merida you're going to join Jack, but,' Toothiana said, raising her finger at the happy look on Merida's face, 'he'll be working you two to the bone. I doubt you'll be having much fun.'

'Go and help Gobber work with the creatures in the forbidden forest,' Bunnymund told Hiccup gruffly.

A series of images appeared above Mansnoozie's head with the most prominent being the image of a medical cross and a birds wing.

'I have to go and work in the hospital wing?' Rapunzel guessed to the nodding of Mansnoozie who then ushered them to leave.

The four looked at one another in confusion, the detentions didn't sound that bad, before turning and heading away to their different locations. Hiccup split off from the rest of the group first, heading down to Gobber's hut, and soon disappeared from view as the others headed inside the castle.

The head teachers smiled at each other and turned around to head into the pitch.

'What do ye say Sandy, a galleon for the winner?' Whittler asked conversationally.

An image of a thumbs-up appeared above Mansnoozie's head and the two shook hands before they parted to join their houses.

* * *

Rapunzel headed up the stairs of the hospital tower, alone except for Pascal, Hogwarts was practically empty while everyone went out to watch the game. She opened the door cautiously; unsure of what she was going to see as she'd never been in the hospital wing before.

'Ah you're here at last,' a voice said from the far end of the room. It had been spoken by a woman dressed in a nurse's outfit who was attending to a young boy lying in one of the beds that lined the room.

She left the boy to drink a potion and walked quickly towards Rapunzel who had to stop herself from stepping back in fear.

'I didn't agree to this,' the woman continued as she looked Rapunzel up and down, 'I didn't want to teach you anything until the second year but Nicholas is using this detention of yours as an excuse to get you in early. Well, we might as well get started, follow me.'

She took Rapunzel to a small office in the back of the hospital and handed her an armband with a red cross to wear. She then took Rapunzel into the hospital wing and introduced her to the current patients in the beds.

'I had a few of your victims in here last term,' the woman who was called Madam Pomfrey said conversationally to Rapunzel, 'nasty head wounds you gave them.'

'Oh…sorry about that,' Rapunzel apologised as she trailed after the nurse.

'Just don't do it again. Now Tom here is suffering from painful stomach cramps from eating a pound of knoxy eggs, which means we're going to have to brew a potion to cure it.'

Rapunzel spent the rest of the day learning the recipes to make curing potions and the incantations of certain healing spells. She realised she was enjoying herself and by the end of the day she was already making suggestions to Madam Pomfrey about which spell or potion would be most useful.

As the sun began to set and the small flow of sick children ended, Pomfrey took Rapunzel back into her office and sat her down at a small table while she prepared a cup of tea.

She sat down to face Rapunzel, placing a tray laden with a teapot, two cups and a plate of biscuits in front of them and began to pour Rapunzel a cup.

'I'm sure you're aware why the staff have sent you to me,' she said calmly, 'you're unique skills are of great interest to them and they want to know how skilled you'll become. I can already vouch that you have an aptitude for charms; Mansnoozie is very impressed at your work, which suggests you will have some skill at healing.'

Pomfrey pushed her sleeve up her skinny arm, took out a small scalpel from her robe pocket and raised it to her skin.

'Wait!' Rapunzel cried, reaching out to grab the hand holding the scalpel while Pascal chirped in alarm. 'I don't like to use my hair; I'm supposed to keep it secret.'

'I never said anything about you hair,' Pomfrey reminded her as she prized Rapunzel off with surprising strength for someone her age. Before Rapunzel could react the nurse quickly made a small cut on her arm and put the scalpel down.

'You watched me heal a few injuries like this today so you know the incantation. You should know before you start that it is impossible for a third year to perform this spell let alone a first year so there's no pressure.'

Pomfrey looked expectantly at Rapunzel who looked back, confused, until she realised what was expected of her and drew out her wand. She tentatively pointed her wand towards the cut which had begun to bleed down Pomfrey's arm.

'Episkey,' she said and felt the familiar glow of magic as it travelled through her wand and lit the tip in soothing white light.

The cut on Pomfrey's arm closed slowly as it was bathed in the light of Rapunzel's wand and Madame Pomfrey gave a small sigh.

'Well done Solaris, you do have talent,' Pomfrey told her as she rolled her sleeve back down, 'finish your tea and you may go for today.'

They sat in mutual silence as they finished their tea and Pascal ate a biscuit happily. Once she'd finished Rapunzel stood up to leave and said her goodbyes as she walked to the door.

Just as she was stepping outside Pomfrey called after her, 'Until next week then Solaris.'

'Uh…yes, see you then,' she called back as she left the wing.

Rapunzel walked quietly down the stairs until she turned a corner and swept quickly into a side corridor. She held Pascal in her cupped hands and talked excitedly with him about what had happened for the next fifteen minutes.

* * *

Hiccup met Gobber outside his hut; the large scot had switched his mechanical arm with a large axe today, and greeted him with the usual hello before Toothless barrelled him over.

'Getting into fights in yer first year Hiccup? Well I really don't know,' the blacksmith had said before wiping a happy tear from his eye. 'Your father must be so proud.'

'Anyway get Toothless ready for a walk, I'm takin' ye into the Forbidden Forest today,' he said in a business-like tone as he sharpened his arm.

'Is the axe really necessary?' Hiccup asked nervously as he stroked Toothless' snout.

'More useful than necessary, always better ta have it than not.'

'_Great_.'

Gobber led the way as they entered the forest, Hiccup and Toothless walking slightly behind him. As they passed the treeline the sunlight above them was cut out and the three were left in semi-darkness. Hiccup wasn't sure for how long they walked, it could have been five minutes or five hours he couldn't tell in this dark. Suddenly Gobber stopped and kneelt down at a patch of shrub.

'Hiccup come and look at this,' he whispered, ushering Hiccup forward.

Hiccup looked at where Gobber was pointing and saw dangling on the branches a few fine silver hairs. Toothless leaned forward and sniffed them gently and gave a content sigh of happiness.

'Unicorn hairs,' Gobber informed him as he carefully picked the thin hairs from the bushes, 'Olivander always pays a fair sum fer these so keep a look out. These look pretty fresh too, stay quiet and we'll see if we can find him.'

An ironic statement coming from Gobber, the man with a wooden peg leg that made it almost impossible not to make a noise as he crashed through the shrubbery. Hiccup followed him warily, although he never believed they would find it. Toothless suddenly raised his head and sniffed the air as the wind changed. He tugged Hiccup forward and slightly to the left of where Gobber was heading.

'Toothless we're supposed to stay with Gobber,' Hiccup hissed as he struggled to drag the dragon back onto the path.

Soon Toothless brought Hiccup into a clearing where a few patches of sunlight were still visible between the leaves of the overhanging trees. Hiccup kept trying to pull the dragon after Gobber but Toothless sat back on his haunches stubbornly and motioned to Hiccup to look forward. He looked around wearily at whatever Toothless was so interested in, and froze. In the clearing lay a topless boy who looked slightly older than him, he was lying on the ground and struggling with something Hiccup couldn't see between the trees. Without thinking Hiccup left Toothless and stepped forward to help, he stepped out into the open to see the boy clearly and nearly yelled out in surprise.

The boy was a centaur, Hiccup couldn't see his horse's body before because it had been blocked from view but now he could see it in full view. He could now see the boy was struggling with a leg that was bent the wrong way and his side which was bleeding slightly from a deep scratch. The boy saw Hiccup immediately and twisted around to grab a bow and arrow and swiftly drew it to point at Hiccup.

'Wait! I'm not trying to hurt you!' Hiccup yelled quickly, raising his hands.

'Get out the way you idiot there's something behind you!' the centaur yelled back, looking behind Hiccup.

Hiccup looked around too to see what the boy was pointing at and saw Toothless slinking out after him from the trees and sighed with relief. 'It's alright he's with me,' he told the boy as Toothless joined him at his side still staring curiously at the boy.

'Oh I'm so relieved…Ah!' the boy returned sarcastically, crying out in pain as he shifted his leg unintentionally.

'Toothless go get me some wood from the trees,' Hiccup told the dragon who nodded and zoomed off across the ground. Hiccup watched the dragon leave and kneeled down to the boy who had lowered his bow but was still watching him warily. 'Can I take a look?'

'No you can't _take a look_ human. I don't need your help.'

'I don't know, it looks broken to me,' Hiccup continued half to himself, 'I could make you a splint, I'm pretty good at making things.'

'What's your name human?' the boy asked in an annoyed tone.

'Hiccup. What's yours?'

'Farris. And know this _Hiccup_, centaurs don't take help from humans so you can take your splint and shove it…'

The rest of Farris' curse was lost at the sound of hoof beats began to echo through the clearing and shake the ground beneath them. In an instant twenty fully grown centaurs charged into the clearing and all aimed their already drawn arrows at Hiccup's head.

'Uh dad, wait before you…' Farris stammered quickly but was cut off before he could finish.

'Get away from my son human!' The lead centaur yelled as he loosened his fingers around the arrow, ready to let it fly.

Hiccup was frozen in place with fear until he heard the familiar screeching cry that signalled an angry Toothless. The dragon appeared to the lead centaur's side and blew a large fireball at his feet that sent him stumbling back from the shockwave. Toothless ran to Hiccup's side and bared his fangs in challenge to the centaurs who all stood back in alarm and surprise.

'Dad it's alright the unicorn did this to me not the human,' Farris said quickly before anything else could happen.

'I thought unicorns were supposed to be nice,' Hiccup whispered from the side of his mouth.

'It's a wild horse with a giant horn on its head genius,' Farris hissed back angrily.

'Why are you in our forests human?' The lead centaur asked, arrow now swinging between Hiccup and Toothless.

'I…uh, I came with Gobber,' Hiccup tried earnestly while Toothless watched the group darkly.

'Aye he's with me,' Gobber's voice called as he appeared out from the trees.

'This boy is trespassing on our territory Gobber and he has made no agreement with us to do so,' the centaur stated flatly in a warning tone, 'this is a serious offence.'

'Pipe down Abhora,' Gobber retorted angrily, 'the boy is with me, and if our agreement extends ta me it does ta him.'

'He brought a dragon! A dangerous beast that threatened my son!'

'That dragon will bring ye no harm as long as ye don't threaten him or Hiccup. Which is why I suggest ye lower the bow.'

The centaurs were reluctant to do so at first but Gobber kept persuading them until they gave in, the looks Toothless was giving them also helped. Gobber and Abhora then spent the next few minutes in a heated argument that they made sure the two boys couldn't hear. Eventually they broke and walked or trotted over to the two who were sitting sheepishly with Toothless lying in front of them. Abhora helped Farris stand up and guided him back into the undergrowth without looking or talking to Hiccup, although Farris did look back curiously before they disappeared.

Gobber waited for the rest of the hunting party to leave before he dragged Hiccup out of the clearing by his ear while Toothless wandered after them.

'What did I say about stickin' close,' he demanded angrily when they'd returned to the path, 'there are worse things in here than centaurs Hiccup, ye could have been hurt.'

'Sorry Gobber, Toothless dragged me away,' Hiccup said apologetically while Toothless sniffed around at his feet.

'Yer goin' ta have ta learn a lot if yer to come in here,' Gobber scolded as they walked deeper into the forest, 'and from now on yer ta stick close until I say ye know enough ta walk around here on yer own.'

'Now,' he continued as they entered another more open clearing, 'why don't we get started with the real trainin''

* * *

Jack and Merida headed into the Defence Against the Dark Arts classroom where Professor Maximus was waiting for them.

He was a tall man with white hair similar to Jack's. Even when standing you could see how his muscles always seemed poised and ready for action, a natural state that you could only achieve after being one of the best Aurors in the world, now retired of course. He was a strict teacher, but kind too in his way. He would expect the highest standards from his students and would work them hard to achieve the results he wanted; however, if a student was hurt during a practise duel he would be the first to react, more caring than even their friends.

He stood in the centre of the room which was currently bare as the tables and chairs had been piled against the wall. Without them the room was much larger and provided enough space for the three to move freely about without the risk of hitting anything which of course was Maximus's plan.

'You're late,' he stated as they walked in, looking at his watch.

'Sorry sir we we're only told to go to you at the quidditch pitch,' Jack apologised as he and Merida stood before the teacher.

'That's not the point, next week I expect you both to get here earlier to make up for lost time,' the professor returned sternly.

'What do ye actually want us to do Professor?' Merida asked curiously as she looked around the empty room.

'Think of this as an advanced Defence Against the Dark Arts class,' he told her, striding forward to look them both in the eye, 'You two are superb duellists and I'd been hoping for an excuse to accelerate your learning.'

'Although neither of you ever hand in your homework,' he muttered under his breath.

'So it's just like normal class, _great_,' Jack said, excitedly clapping his hands together.

'Oh I wouldn't get too happy about it,' Maximus said pleasantly, 'there's only one way you can prove to me that you've passed this class.'

'How?'

'By beating me in a duel,' he answered, drawing his wand from the folds of his robes, 'care to test your worth?'

The two looked at Maximus, standing ready in a fighting stance, and then to each other. Jack shrugged and stepped forward first, raising his staff in readiness. He bowed his head to the professor as he had been taught in class to do whenever you started a duel.

In a flash Maximus had halved the distance between them, changing from standing still to a full gallop without reaching any speed in-between. Jack stumbled back in surprise but had enough time to raise his staff and fire a bolt of ice at the teacher's chest, hoping to slow him down. Maximus spun to the side and dodged the bolt as it passed and before Jack could try again he'd been knocked down, his legs kicked out from under him while Maximus stood and pointed his wand at Jack's heart.

'You didn't bow,' Jack accused him angrily as he stood up.

'Anyone trying to curse you won't bow, and they aren't going to let you get up,' Maximus reminded him nonchalantly, 'Want a go Merida?'

'Sure.'

Maximus returned to his previous position in front of them and Merida stepped forward, her wand at the ready. They stood waiting for the other to make the first move, squaring each other up. Merida moved first, she flicked her wand to use the flippendo spell which Maximus dodged easily. He stepped forward smartly and pushed Merida's arm out the way to point at Jack as she let loose another spell which sent him toppling to the floor. Then the world went upside down.

After she righted herself and helped Jack stand up she looked sulkily at Maximus.

'Ye didn't even use magic,' she said dejectedly.

'Of course not. I didn't have to,' Maximus told her as he put a hand on both their shoulders, 'I have had years to master magic and other forms of battle. I know the Dunbrochs train their families in physical as well as magical combat and the Frosts have their own skills but you both have much to learn before you're ready to fight me.'

'Now face each other,' he commanded as he stepped back, 'You're going to spend the rest of the lesson practising your duelling magic _and_ your movements. This isn't like normal class, I don't want you to let the other hit you so they can learn the spell. I expect both of you to dodge every spell that's sent at you. And don't hold back, if your opponent gets hit it's their own fault.'

At his urging the two stood in front of each other, a couple of feet apart, their wand and staff once more at the ready. Jack jumped suddenly forward and spun his staff to send a flurry of ice bolts at Merida but she was faster and had already sidestepped around them, firing a jinx of her own. Jack called the winds and rose up above her spell but now he was an easier target in mid-air and Merida fired a second spell at him, forcing him to call the winds off immediately and fall heavily to the ground to avoid it.

He flung his crook around, trying to catch Merida's ankles with its hook but she jumped over it and landed behind him as he staggered up. Before she could open her mouth jack spun, his staff glowing blue with magic, hoping to freeze her with a close contact spell but she flung herself backwards at the last minute, just missing the end of the staff.

She charged him again, hoping to use her superior combat skills to counter his ice magic but he froze the ground between them, covering it in a slippery film of ice that would surely make her fall. Merida didn't slow down but instead of running head on she altered her trajectory towards the wall were she jumped onto the edge of a desk and immediately off again sending a spell in mid-air as she soared towards him.

Jack jumped away from the spell but then had Merida herself bearing down on him as she landed on solid ground. She had jumped close enough to force him constantly back as he tried to avoid her spells and kicks. He was unbalanced and she knew it as she pressed him further back, hoping to open a weak spot, and there it was!

Jack had tripped at her last kick and watched as Merida raised her wand for the final strike that would hit him without any doubt. Out of desperation more than anything he resorted to an old trick and before he realised it a snowball had formed in his hand, without thinking he threw it. It didn't hit anywhere vulnerable but it distracted Merida for the briefest second and that was all Jack needed. He pointed his staff and Merida was knocked down by a small snowy explosion, sliding backwards on the still icy floor.

'Well done,' Maximus told them as he watched, sitting on his desk in the farthest point away from their fight.

'Damn Frost I thought I had you,' Merida cheered happily as he helped her up and dispelled the ice on the floor.

'That was great, the way you jumped of that desk. _So_ cool,' Jack returned excitedly, the two rejoicing in the adrenalin rush from the fight.

'A good first go but you're both still holding back,' Maximus interrupted as he stepped between them, 'I said go all out, if you get hurt Madame Pomfrey can cure it.'

'In addition,' he continued quickly, 'Jack you need to work on your movements, you were rarely advancing _at_ Merida in the fight; you kept allowing yourself to be pushed back. And Merida I want you to be more imaginative with your spells, while Iknow I haven't taught you as wide a variety as you will learn I expect you to start coming in with spells you've taught yourself outside class, and yes that does mean reading and research. The element of surprise is a great gift in any fight, keep them on their toes.'

The two nodded in solemn agreement as he instructed them, although Merida rolled her eyes, and took mental notes to his criticisms.

'Now then,' the professor said as he settled back onto his desk, 'Again.'

By the end of the lesson the sun had set and Merida and Jack staggered out, bloodied and bruised but smiling so much it looked as if the tops of their heads might fall off. They slowly limped their way back to their common rooms where the rest of the houses had already returned.

Both houses had planned on making a snide comment about how they'd had to miss the match. The Slytherins also planned on complaining that Jack's detention, whatever it was, was nowhere near as bad as having to polish the trophy room for five hours without magic. That is until they saw the two's appearance, as if they'd just been beaten into the ground by a giant, and stayed quiet as the two passed through the common room and fell full length onto their beds and fell asleep fully clothed but content.

* * *

The four grew to love their detentions more and more as the year went by until for a few weeks it was all they could talk about with each other. Eventually, however, the time came when their focus was taken up by revision for the upcoming exams and their detentions became less frequent to allow for revision time. Sooner than they realised, they were all sitting in classrooms writing exams or performing in the practical tests.

In the Great Hall above them the exams for the next day were all anyone could talk about, every conversation was about their anticipation or excitement for different subjects. The teachers looked amusedly over the groups of students huddling around each other to discuss answers or what they thought would be asked of them in the practical tests.

The lights from the Great Hall illuminated the grass of the grounds outside from the high windows where the echoes of worried students faded; everything was brightly lit despite the closing night, except for the Dark Forest. The great trees blocked off all light to the inside, leaving nothing but darkness and shadow.

From that darkness small pinpricks of light started to appear. The glowing yellow eyes of the Nightmares sparkled among the trees as they gathered in front of the magical barrier that protected Hogwarts.

Pitch Black strode between them, the dirty rags of Azkaban replaced by beautiful flowing black robes that blended with the shadows so supremely that the wizard could barely be seen in the night.

'Hello Hogwarts,' he said smoothly, as if greeting an old friend. 'It's been too long.'

He motioned to the lead Nightmare to step forward with his hand. The Nightmare obeyed immediately, slowly stepping across the grass and over tree roots until it stood before the invisible barrier of Hogwarts. It hesitated for the briefest moment but after sensing the impatience of its master it walked forward into the killing magic.

Nothing happened. The Nightmares were unknown to the spells that formed the shield and could slip through it without harm, just as Black had planned.

'The Guardians have failed to guard,' Black stated as he calmly stroked the Nightmares flanking him, 'and tomorrow, they will fail to protect.'


	7. The Attack

**The Attack**

The bell tolled two o'clock and a stream of grateful students washed out from their final exams. Every face wore a similar expression of exhaustion and dread as the students slowly filed away, taken by the flow of people around them without any real sense of direction. The four stumbled out a few minutes after everyone else to avoid being intentionally jostled by the crowd but shared their expression.

'That…was…awful,' Merida moaned as they walked away from the History of Magic classroom where they'd taken their final test.

'I swear Binns never taught us half of that,' Jack complained beside her.

'You probably just weren't listening,' Rapunzel muttered back as she rubbed her temples, she'd found the test pretty hard too.

'As if you'd know!'

'Even copying your notes didn't help Rapunzel,' Hiccup told her as they rounded a corner. 'All I could remember was the Goblin revolution in 1891.'

'1623,' Rapunzel corrected him, grinning apologetically.

'Oh no, really? I wrote half my essay on that!' Hiccup complained to the faint smiles of the others.

The four had all been wiped out by the exam which had included two of the hardest essay questions they'd ever been set. It had been a terrible hour of dates and times and struggling to remember half-heard lectures that had managed to suck the energy from them in the first ten minutes. They all agreed without saying a word that they would return to their common rooms to sleep the exam off like a _bad_ headache and stopped at the end of the corridor to say their goodbyes before they split up.

BOOM! An explosion erupted around them as the wall that faced the school grounds exploded inwards and threw the four to the floor. They lay there, dazed and confused among the rubble as screams accompanied other explosions throughout the school and black shapes sped over them from the newly opened hole in the wall. They staggered to their feet as their heads cleared and they could all think again.

'What was that?' Merida yelled as they heard more explosions further away, her heart pounding fast in her chest.

'What are _they_?' Hiccup asked in return, pointing at two of the black figures that had passed them and were now curving back around.

The things slowed and stood in mid-air for a moment as they sniffed the four's scent, searching for their fears. Now the creatures were closer the four could see they were in the shape of horses but with muscles made from a combination of black sand and mist. The horse creatures had smelled enough and, after only a second's pause, charged at the three, their nostrils flaring. The four reeled back as the horses neared, terror clutched at them as images of their most feared thoughts sprang to their minds. They stood, paralyzed as the horses rose to send their dark hooves crushing down upon the four's skulls.

A bright shock of light flashed before them and the horses vanished in an explosion of dead sand. A red haired girl ran up the steps, her wand still glowing from her spell, and looked the four up and down quickly to check for any signs of harm. The four breathed out as the heart clenching fear left them and with relief at the sight of Lily Potter, Head Girl. They all felt better now that someone in charge was nearby.

'All of you get to your common rooms,' she ordered hurriedly, 'you'll be less affected by those things next time so you won't get frozen again. Go now!'

Her last words were yelled as more horses swarmed through the hole and surrounded her in a sphere of swirling sand. The four moved forward to help her, the fear the creatures had summoned before _was_ weaker and they weren't going to abandon the woman who'd just saved them.

'I said GO!' Lily's voice roared from within the shadows.

The four stopped, unsure and expecting the worst, but saw that within the sphere that lights were starting to emerge and gaps were appearing as the monsters were slain into clouds of sand. They could see Lily in the centre, weaving amongst the black shapes and waving her wand ferociously, sending out spell after spell at the creatures and never tiring, her face a mixture of concentration and anger.

'She's winning, come on,' Rapunzel decided for them as the sphere grew even thinner and the four ran past the dark cloud and down the stairs, not for their common rooms but to find how much of the school was under attack.

They raced down the stairs and into another corridor that was empty of any enemy but echoed with the sounds of fighting further away. They turned a corner onto the Grand Staircase and there they found the source of the sounds. From every floor and every staircase students fought the horses, spells ricocheting of walls and steps as students missed and horses dodged.

A group of the things galloped over the stairs the four were standing on and turned to charge them from the air. Jack sprang towards them as he summoned the winds to carry him and swung at the first, disintegrating it with the touch of a freezing spell. More were destroyed a second later as Rapunzel lifted and fired rubble at them like machine gun fire. One managed to dodge the rocks and reach Merida who jumped out the way as it tried to ram her and fired a spell point blank into its head which took the body with it in the resulting blast. Hiccup destroyed the last by using the incendir spell to spit fire at the creatures, burning them into smouldering heaps.

More monsters appeared behind them and the four readied themselves for another strike. Before they could move the horses vanished, exploding one by one as two boomerangs sailed through the air in a graceful and deadly arc. Bunnymund caught them in mid-air as he jumped to deliver a kick to another horse as it attacked a second year and spun to send them flying again.

'First and second years get to safety now!' He ordered as he drew two small eggs from a pouch and threw them to create a covering multi-coloured smokescreen for the younger years to escape in.

'You four too!' He called out to the four as they tried to charge back into the fray, 'This isn't your fight, stay sheltered.'

Having slaughtered all the horses on the current floor Bunnymund left the four to descend the stairs as he climbed further up to deal with the enemy there. They did, deciding that Bunnymund could take care of himself and ran down the stairs to join the fights below.

They reached the bottom where the large area in front of the Great Hall had become a battle ground. There must have been hundreds of students and horses in constant motions of battle while around the edges younger years were hurried behind the doors of the Great Hall itself to barricade themselves in.

Suddenly from within the dungeons Professor Whittler burst forth, wand at the ready, and charged into the centre followed quickly by every sharp potions knife in the dungeons that cut through horse after horse in a flurry of steel. The old witch waded through the centre of the maelstrom as her knives cut a deadly path around her, killing any horse that got too close to the Great Hall.

A first year suddenly ran past them as a horse charged him down, easily outpacing the crying boy. It was all the four needed to jump in themselves.

'Wingardium Leviosa!' Rapunzel cried and the horse was immediately crushed under a large piece of rubble that she floated above it, giving the boy a chance to escape into the Great Hall.

Another horse reared behind her but was struck down by Merida who then pivoted and killed a second that was charging her from the side. Hiccup and Jack were fighting together to take down a large pack of creatures that were trying to break through the students to get to the Hall. Jack's staff threw razor sharp icicles through the pack while Hiccup tripped them up using Tantalus Talentegra so the horses' four legs skittered and tangled in a jolly jig, causing them to fall to the floor and get crushed underfoot by the horses advancing behind them.

Even with the attempts of the students the horses were gaining ground and soon the children found themselves being pushed back further and further against the doors they were trying to protect. The horses began to whinny and cry with excitement as they felt the fear of the first years within the Hall and the exhaustion of the rest of the students.

A large war cried sounded as the rest of the teachers landed down the staircase and began to pummel the horses from behind. Headmaster North lead the charge, his wand in one hand and a curved scimitar in the other, cutting and cursing his way through the black sea. Toothiana flew at the beasts, ripping through them by hand and firing spells to catch horses that tried to fly after her. Mansnoozie summoned a golden whip at the tip of his wand and used it to lash and rip away the leading horses to give the students more breathing space.

With the aid of the teachers the fight turned and soon the horses were being backed out of the school and into the courtyard. While this was a good sign of the battle it also meant the fighting grew more spread out and the four found themselves growing steadily apart as they chased down more monsters.

Jack began to specialise in catching the ones that flew up in the air to escape the fight. He flew on the wintery winds and struck down as many that came at him while maintaining an unparalleled view of the battle, watching out for any stray horses that might be missed by the others. It was because of this that Jack saw him.

Pitch Black was standing at the edge of the Forbidden Forest watching Jack flying above the fight with a look of amusement. When he saw that Jack had noticed him, Black turned sedately on his heel and wandered further into the cover of the trees, out of sight.

Jack floated on the winds for a moment, stunned by the revelation. _Pitch Black? This was because of him_. Jack gritted his teeth in anger; the air around him growing colder as his magic reacted to his emotions.

Black was trying to hurt his school, his friends, kill them even. He was going to take these things from Jack like he'd taken Jack's father.

_NO! I won't let it happen; _he thought angrily as he began to descend to the forest, _I'll kill him. I won't let him hurt them too. I'll kill him first or die trying!_

He banished the winds as he landed at the edge of the forest. Ice began to form on the barks of the tree in his presence as he walked below their leaves, his staff raised to strike at the slightest movement.

'Show yourself Black! Face me!' He called into the shadows of the forest as he advanced.

'So eager to die little Frost?' A voice drawled back from deeper in, 'Well, like father like son I suppose.'

'Shut up!' Jack yelled back as he fired an ice bolt at a moving shadow but hit nothing. 'You're nothing but a coward; otherwise you'd have come out and fought me in the open.'

'In the open? How could I do that when I couldn't pass the barrier that protects Hogwarts? No, I needed you to come to me,' Black's voice echoed through the trees, except for the last line which sounded as if it was spoken behind him.

Swiftly Jack spun around and fired another bolt at Black who waved his wand lazily and deflected it with ease.

'Thank you for your cooperation,' the dark wizard continued as he stood between Jack and Hogwarts, blocking off any escape.

* * *

Merida finished off the last horse in the courtyard that had been trying to sneak around to strike her from behind. She cheered with the others as she saw the rest of the horses escaping back to the dark confines of the Forbidden Forest.

'Thank gods that's over,' Hiccup cheered behind her, his face covered in soot and dirt.

'I wonder what those things were,' Rapunzel said to them as she arrived from across the field where she'd been assisting a pair of third years. 'I don't think I've seen them in any book.'

'At least they're gone. We don't have ta worry about it now,' Merida said triumphantly. 'Where's Jack by the way? I've got a kill count ta compare.'

'He was in the air the last time I saw him,' Hiccup told her, shading his eyes as he looked into the sky.

'Ha, he knows I got more and he's hidin' like a wee babe,' Merida laughed eagerly as she began to look around the yard for signs of the white haired boy.

'Uh guys,' Rapunzel said pointing to a group of trees with their sides frozen in ice. 'I think he went that way.'

'Yeah, only he'd leave ice in this weather,' Hiccup agreed as he followed Rapunzel's gaze, the hot summer sun had been beaming a constant warm glow for the last week.

'Hiccup, go get Toothless,' Merida ordered suddenly as she gripped her wand again.

'What's wrong?' Rapunzel asked worried.

'That's the same direction those horses went.'

* * *

Jack weaved through the trees as he tried to dodge Black's dark spells which seared through the forest, cutting down anything in their path. He turned back and fired more of his own spells but to no effect as Black blocked everything sent at him.

'I admit I'm amused,' Black drawled slowly as he sent shadow knives firing at Jack who jumped behind another tree. 'A staff wielder at your age and magic without an incantation. You truly have talent.'

Jack froze the ground beneath pitch and sent an icy gale at the man who smiled and waved his wand to create a swirl of black flames that melted the ground and burned the winds away.

'Honestly this is pathetic,' he suddenly sneered as he deflected another ice bolt, 'Where's the other winter magic Jack? Your father was impressive; he had tricks up his sleeve that were extraordinary. You may have talent but you clearly lack any skill or experience.'

'Unfortunately for you, I have all three,' he added as he blasted away a whole section of forest with a wide sweeping spell that sent Jack spinning through the air in his desperation to dodge. 'Your father would be _so_ disappointed,' he gloated happily as Jack fell back to the ground and staggered up.

'Don't you _dare_ talk about my father!' Jack yelled, firing another volley of ice bolts that were deflected back at him with a lazy flick of Black's wand.

'Now Jack, you don't blame me for your father's death, do you?' Pitch called after him as he hid among a clump of trees that were frozen solid by his own spells.

'I blame you for everything!' Jack yelled back as he flung more spells at Pitch, forced back in the open as the trees were cut down by Black's magic.

'Your father sacrificed himself to stop me, I didn't do anything,' Pitch continued calmly, speaking as if they were merely having a friendly conversation rather than a death match.

'Which was rather inconvenient really. After all, I may have _wanted_ to get sent to Azkaban but I was hoping that when I left I could kill your father to prove my superiority. As it is I'll have to settle for second best.'

Black scythed his wand and black mist erupted from his its tip, cutting through the vegetation to Jack who only just managed to freeze it solid with an ice spell. Jack tried to retaliate but before he could Pitch flicked his wand again, hitting Jack with a hammer of black sand that sent Jack hurling through the forest.

'Have you even bothered to learn anymore of your father's spells?' Pitch taunted as he continued to force Jack back. 'My god, your father would be so ashamed of you. Even after his death you couldn't be bothered to try and teach yourself his heritage. Disappointing.'

Jack huddled among a few tree branches and clutched his staff tightly, knowing that in some way Black was right. He hadn't really looked through his father's book since he arrived at Hogwarts. He was about to turn and face Black again when dark shapes erupted around him and grabbed him in sandy clutches.

He was forced to the ground and held in position at Black's feet who stared balefully down at him.

'Sorry Jack I got bored of waiting for you to come out. Do you like my Nightmares? I was always fascinated by the dementors, so powerful with their own unique abilities but _so weak_ in others. I needed better for my plans so I decided to create a spell based from their magic but that meant either tracking down the survivors, hiding at the edges of the Earth like the weak vermin they are, or I could allow myself to be captured and study what they left behind in Azkaban. The Nightmares are the result and they are _such_ an improvement; they grow stronger the closer they get to fear, they're immune to the patronus and, although they're vulnerable to other spells, they're unending as they'll keep coming back as long as there is a source of fear to feed on and, of course, they are loyal to me alone.'

Pitch walked around Jack as he continued his monologue while Jack struggled against the Nightmares pinning him down but without result, they were too strong.

'So you see Jack, while I am grateful for your father's assistance in the creation of my Nightmares,' Pitch rambled on as he stood in front of Jack again who was raised onto his knees to face the dark wizard, 'I can't really allow his actions against me to go unpunished and as he's dead I'll have to settle with getting revenge on you,'

With a swift swiping movement Black swung his wand round in an arc, using a very simple cutting spell. Jack felt the spell as it cut into his throat and blood began to gush down from the wound. He gasped and fell back, released by the Nightmares so that Black could watch his last dying moments unhindered.

Jack crawled away from the wizard, knowing it was pointless. His throat had been cut and there was nothing he could do to save himself, Black had killed him. He gasped for air and felt some enter his lungs as he kept crawling but sputtered and coughed at the effort, he could still see Black sitting and watching him but the world was going blurry and fading to a colourless grey.

'Jack!' A voice cried out to him, he thought he'd imagined it until Pitch's head snapped round to follow the noise. Suddenly from the trees Merida and Rapunzel burst out, firing spells simultaneously at Black who deflected them in irritation and raised his wand for a counter curse.

A screeching sound began above them and Pitch looked up just in time to dodge a blast of fire as Hiccup and Toothless soared over him. Pitch yelled angrily and sent spells against the dragon which earthed themselves harmlessly along his scales. Screaming in rage he ordered the Nightmares to chase after the dragon, which were quickly dealt with by a combined attack from Toothless and Hiccup. They had trained for hours with Gobber during their detentions to develop the first dragon/human combo spells and they were clearly very effective as Nightmares fell to the searing hot flames Toothless and Hiccup threw at them. While Pitch was distracted by the swift rider Merida and Rapunzel hurried towards the prone Jack.

'Oh God, look at his neck!' Merida yelled in panic, 'Can ye do somethin'?'

'I don't know any spells for this kind of wound,' Rapunzel replied back, equally worried.

Pitch was furious now as the dragon continued to elude him and his Nightmares but he noticed it required a prosthetic tail fin. Grinning he sent a fire spell at the fin which burst into flame, causing rider and dragon to plummet to the ground. Hiccup landed near the others while Toothless fell further back and confronted more of the Nightmares, blasting them into oblivion with his purple flames and ripping their flanks with his fangs and claws until he was suddenly weighed down by a large press of the monsters all at once, still snapping and flaming.

'I see you've made some loyal friends Frost,' Pitch panted slightly as he straightened his robes.

'So I tell you what. You can all die together. Avada Kadavra!'

Pitch pointed his wand at the four and a green light sprang from the tip. Instinctively they all raised their wands and yelled together while Jack managed to raise his staff and whisper with them:

'Protego!'

It was a desperate attempt that they all knew would fail. None of them had mastered the shielding spell yet, Maximus had set it as a sort of joke homework before the exams, and even then, nothing could block the killing curse.

There was a horrific screaming sound as the spells met. The air where the curse and shield met was rippling and crackling between the four and Black, still emitting that tortured scream. Suddenly the rippling mass contracted into a tiny point and exploded back outwards in a single second. The shockwave was large enough to knock down all the trees around it into a flat circle and blasted the four to the ground while it sent Black hurtling into a tree, shattering it into a thousand pieces.

'Impossible!' Black spat as he raised himself back up, his face contorted by confusion and rage.

Before anything else could happen Professors Mansnoozie, Toothiana, Bunnymund, Whittler and North jumped into the circle, their wands aimed at Pitch who screamed with fury at the sight of them.

'You're going back where you belong Black,' Bunnymund snarled as he levelled a boomerang, ready to throw.

Anger and Hate crossed Black's face as he stared the teachers down but vanished as he composed himself, smoothing down his robe as he straightened up.

'Go suck an egg rabbit,' he cursed calmly before raising his wand and sending out a volley of spells against the teachers who dodged and returned their own. The duel was vicious between them, Pitch managing to take on all five enemies at once, but barely. They danced and spun around each other, leaving the four for a moment to huddle on the ground.

Jack was lying still while the others gathered around him. Merida was trying to pump Jack's heart, although it was probably out of trying to do something rather than actually helping.

'Oh God, I think his hearts stopped!' She cried, resting her head against the boy's chest with tears streaming from her eyes.

'No he's still breathing. I'm sure of it,' Hiccup replied desperately as tears flowed down his cheeks too. He cupped Jacks face in his hand, trying to feel the life still in the white haired boy, hoping against hope that he was right.

'Merida, help me with my hair,' Rapunzel called to the redhead as she struggled to untie her braid, Pascal squeaking at her to hurry up.

'Ta hell with yer hair!'

'Merida, help me NOW!' Rapunzel ordered angrily in such a commanding tone that Merida found herself doing it automatically before she realised what was happening.

They untied the braid together and Rapunzel's hair fell between them in a large pool of silky gold. Quickly without looking at the others Rapunzel wound a length of hair twice around Jack's cut neck.

'What?' Merida asked incredulously as the golden haired girl sat back with her eyes closed in a look of determination; her hands pressed firmly on the wrap of hair, and began to sing.

_Flower gleam and glow,_

_Let your powers shine,_

_Make the clock reverse,_

_Bring back what once was mine._

_Heal what has been hurt,_

_Change the Fate's design,_

_Save what has been lost,_

_Bring back what once was mine._

_What once was mine._

As Rapunzel sang her hair began to glow and shine with a bright golden light like the rays of the sun. Her music echoed with a power that washed through the others who felt as if they were suddenly at the edge of a great sea which washed around them. Around Jack's neck the glow of the hair was most extreme, shifting to red, orange and purple hues that grew brighter as the song progressed. When the song was over Jack gasped, sucking in lungfuls of air and dislodging Rapunzel's hair as he sat up to feel the tender area of skin where the cut had been.

The battle behind them had stopped as the spell washed over the combatants who all watched Rapunzel with awe. As the song ended the teachers began to come to their senses but not as fast as Pitch Black.

'How fascinating,' he whispered with interest. As the teachers turned back to him he smiled at the four before waving his wand to be surrounded in a storm of Nightmares. The teachers all fired spells, knives and boomerangs at the column of black sand but when it disappeared there was no trace of Black.

'Damn!' North cursed angrily before breathing deeply and calming himself. 'Oh well, at least zhe children are safe.'

'I could have sworn I heard Black use the killing curse,' Toothiana told them all quietly.

'And I heard them use protego but they can't have blocked it. Could they?' Bunnymund replied unsurely.

'It has begun,' North told them all simply. 'We must keep them all safe now, until zhe time comes.'

The teachers nodded in tired agreement as they all watched the three hugging Jack who was in danger of suffocating as they crushed his ribs. The four were all laughing with relief and exhaustion combined.

For now at least, it was over.

* * *

**Phew, an entire chapter mostly about fighting. This was probably the most fun to write so far for me so I hope you enjoyed it.**

**And so the mystery deepens. What are the teachers talking about? What will Black do now (Something evil)? How well did the four do in their History of Magic exam (Not well)? All will be revealed at some point in the future with no specifications as to when :P**

**Thanks for sticking with the story and have a great weekend :)**


	8. The Visit

**The Visit**

Merida woke with a groan as her mother pulled the curtains of her bedroom aside to allow the light of the midday sun to shine directly on her face. She'd been having such a good dream of hunting in the deep forests around her home but even as she rubbed at her eyes she could feel any detail from it slipping away.

'Ugh mum, why do ye have ta do that?' She grumbled moodily as she sat up.

Elinor smiled back at her lovingly with a touch of humour, as mothers do when they annoy their children. She had been up for many hours and was already dressed in a beautiful green gown while her long hair was tied into a single braid behind her.

'Well dear I thought ye might like to be semi-conscious when yer friends arrive,' she told Merida calmly as Merida wrestled with her sheets to find a way out. 'They'll be here in about fifteen minutes.'

'What!' Merida cried as she managed to fling aside the last sheet and leap out of bed, her drowsiness forgotten. 'That's not enough time ta get ready!'

'This is why a witch should rise early,' Elinor called after her as Merida ran into her bathroom to turn on the shower.

It had been over a year since the four's encounter with Pitch. They had spent the last few days of school talking and debating over what had happened in the forest. Rapunzel explained to them her unusual powers, the magic of her hair and it healing abilities. The others pestered her with questions about why she had this gift and how it worked so she explained as best as she could but with no real understanding herself. The rest of the time they spent discussing what had happened with their protego spell. They couldn't have blocked avada kadavra; no one could, so something else must have affected it, but as hard as they tried the four could not think of anything that would weaken or stop the killing curse.

They'd asked the teachers in the hope they would have some insight but weren't given anything useful so they let it go as a fluke, a small miracle that had graced them in their time of need. They left Hogwarts and returned to spend the summer at home with their families but found themselves restless, itching for something to do and waiting for the chance to return to Hogwarts and their friends.

Now it was the summer before their third year and this time the four had prepared. Merida had invited round the other three to spend a week at the Dunbroch castle before school started and thankfully their families had consented.

Merida quickly stumbled out of the shower and dived into her closet to grab her hunting gear, a pair of trousers and a loose shirt designed for easy movement that allowed her to pull a bow's string back correctly, tossing aside the thousands of dresses her mother insistently tried to give her instead.

'Really Merida, what are yer friends goin' ta think when they see ya dressed in that?' Her mother exclaimed in exasperation as Merida tightened the belt around her waist.

'They _know_ me mum,' was all Merida said in reply and Elinor had to concede. Anyone who knew Merida would know she hated to wear a dress and would only wear a robe when she had no choice.

Merida rushed out of her room, followed more slowly by her mother, and charged down to the main hall of the castle, sliding along bannisters and knocking aside people in her haste. She dropped down and landed heavily on the stone floor of the hall to be greeted by her father and brothers who had been playing sword fighting in its centre.

'Up a little early aren't ye lass?' Fergus called to her as he parried the blows of two of the triplets simultaneously, 'I could've sworn it was only twelve.'

Before Merida could reply with a witty response the fireplace at the end of the hall suddenly burst into green flames. Out of the flames Jack casually stepped out, the fires closest to him burning slightly blue, who waved in greeting to the assembled family. The fires flared again and Hiccup and Rapunzel appeared one after the other behind him, Rapunzel running into Hiccup as she tried to get out of the fire, still a little wary of the flames as she'd never grown up using the floo network.

'Hey Merida, couldn't you be bothered to dress up for your guests?' Jack teased while dressed in his usual blue hoodie and jeans.

'Not on yer life,' Merida retorted happily as the Hiccup and Rapunzel ran up to join them.

'Merida,' her mother called over before anyone could say anything else, 'why don't ye introduce us.'

'I'm Elinor, Merida's mother,' she continued as she offered her hand to be shaken which the others did as they introduced themselves, although a bit more seriously than they normally would have outside of Elinor's dignified presence.

When it came for Rapunzel's turn Elinor stopped and smiled brightly. 'Oh my, what lovely hair you have,' she said as Rapunzel smiled back unsurely, 'it must take a lot of time ta comb.'

'Uh not really,' Rapunzel answered while Pascal rolled his eyes at the response, it took Rapunzel hours every morning to brush her hair and he'd normally be woken up by her as she went into the common room to do it.

'I try to comb Merida's hair ye know but it's just so tangled and messy and I need a pair of shears ta cut it whenever she lets me, which is not often by the way,' Elinor continued conversationally.

'Mum!' Merida hissed angrily as the boys smirked behind her.

Suddenly Fergus appeared behind Hiccup who nearly jumped a foot in the air in surprise as the man loomed over him. 'Well, what have we got here?' Fergus asked as he looked down at the trembling Hiccup.

'Uh…hi,' Hiccup said, nervously waving as Fergus grinned down at him.

'Would ya look at that…we match!' Fergus cheered happily as he gestured at their artificial legs, his made of wood and Hiccup's of metal.

'How'd ye get it lad, I got mine fightin' off the demon-bear Mordu. Bit it clean off in one bite that monster did,' Fergus continued as he pulled Hiccup closer conspiratorially although everyone in the room could hear him.

'I, uh, got it when I killed a Red Death dragon,' Hiccup replied as the man listened intently, 'it sort of exploded when my dragon Toothless shot fire in its mouth.'

'Ha! Ye must be a Haddock, I met yer father once when we were young lads and only his son could do somethin' like that at yer age,' Fergus continued, clapping Hiccup on the back and sending him flying into the ground.

Merida was watching this with growing amusement as Hiccup was regaled by Fergus with his most horrific stories and grew paler with each tale. She heard her father begin talking about the time his hunting party had encountered a chimera and decided to rescue the poor boy before he threw up.

'Hey dad, do ye mind if I take Hiccup and the others out now?' she asked sweetly as she pulled Hiccup away by the arm towards Rapunzel.

'Oh but I was just gettin' ta the best part. Ye see, it spat poison at the man on my right and his skin began ta…' Fergus continued hurriedly before being interrupted by Elinor.

'I think it's a great idea Merida, why not take some food with ye for lunch.'

'Alright,' Merida called back as she dragged Jack away from the triplets who he'd been feeding ideas on how to best to prank Maudie the maid. She took the four down to the kitchens were they grabbed a couple of bites of food to eat and then guided them out onto the flying grounds of the castle, passing across the castle grounds to do so.

'Wow Merida, how big is your house?' Rapunzel asked incredulously as he looked over the small houses that were dotted around the much larger castle.

'It used ta only be a small fort where the Dunbroch clan lived,' Merida told them as they looked out over the small crowds that moved below them. 'But when my ancestors united the magic clans of the highlands it was rebuilt and turned into the main stronghold of the Dunbroch kings.'

'Is that muscle I see Hiccup?' Jack asked, not paying attention as Merida carried on, squeezing Hiccup's arm while he swung his staff onto his shoulder with the other hand, the crook hanging over Hiccup's head.

'What? I…uh…I don't…' Hiccup stammered, blushing crimson as Jack didn't let go. It was true, the girls noticed, Hiccup was no longer quite as skinny as he had once been and filled out his shirt a lot more than he had as a first year, although that didn't say much as small tree branches could've filled his shirt out more back then.

'Jack stop seducin' Hiccup, were here,' Merida called back to them, causing Jack to let go of Hiccup's arm and stick his tongue out at her which allowed Hiccup to lose some of the colour from his cheeks and start breathing again.

They'd arrived at the flying pitch, a long court where three hoops stood on each end and to the side a small building made from red brick which contrasted to the older grey stones that formed most of the castle. Merida ushered them over to the building and opened the door to reveal the largest supply of quidditch equipment the three had ever seen. Walls were lined with riding gear, trophies and old brooms while a large trunk was left on one side, containing the quidditch balls.

Merida hurried over and tossed the three a broom each before disappearing into a side room and returning with a broom of her own. Unlike theirs Merida's broom was clearly new and well looked after, it was made from blackened wood with metal foot grips near the well-trimmed brush and along the side in glowing red and yellow letters ran the word _Cinderbolt_.

'Is that what I think it is?' Jack asked, looking reverently at the wooden beauty while Hiccup and Rapunzel looked at each other in confusion.

'What's going on?' Rapunzel asked as she looked between Merida and Jack.

'It's a cinderbolt broom that dad bought me,' Merida explained, 'So fast it keeps goin' after the firebolt burns out – or at least that's what the makers say and I've got ta agree.'

'This is so cool Merida, there's no way they won't let you on the team now,' Jack said excitedly. They both new that spots had opened up on the Gryffindor and Slytherin quidditch teams this year and although their houses still treated them like shit they were damned if they weren't going to try out for the teams.

'Speaking of which, you'll need a broom yourself,' Merida said, grinning at him.

'Yeah, I'm going to have to sell a few things to afford one though, even with my savings,' Jack replied distantly as he looked over Merida's broom, not really listening as he examined the handle.

'Well ye could always use that broom,' Merida told him, indicating the broom he held.

'Thanks Merida but you know how old brooms can be…' Jack started before stopping as he took in the broom Merida had handed him. He'd been wrong to think it was an old one like the two Hiccup and Rapunzel had taken, instead it seemed almost as new as Merida's with a smooth varnished surface. He turned it over and saw the silver inscription on the side – _Nimbus 3000_ – the perfect match for Merida's cinderbolt in terms of speed and design.

'Wha'… Merida I can't take this, it must have cost a fortune,' he exclaimed while he tried to hand it back to the grinning redhead who pushed it back towards him.

'Which is why we all chipped in to get it for you,' Hiccup explained behind him, causing Jack to turn to see two identical grinning faces beaming back at him.

'It's your early Christmas present,' Rapunzel explained as he continued to stare at them in disbelief.

'I...I don't know what to say,' he said as they all watched him, 'This is the best present I've ever had.'

'Well it wouldn't be much fun fer me if the competition was too slow ta keep up,' Merida laughed at him. 'Come on then, let's go give them a test run,' she continued excitedly as she ran out onto the pitch.

The others followed her and soon they were all rising into the air, a little shakily in Rapunzel and Hiccup's case who were riding older brooms whose magic had weakened. Jack and Merida flew up to match each other's height while the other two struggled to follow. Jack could already feel the speed in his new broom as they rose, the way it responded to his grip and moved so smoothly showed just how well-crafted the broom was.

'There's a nice spot in the forest we could go to,' Merida yelled over to the others, pointing to a spot somewhere ahead of them, 'let's go there fer lunch.'

'Race ya!' Jack yelled back before leaning into his broom and urging to where Merida had pointed.

Immediately the Nimbus sped forward, accelerating at an incredible speed, the landscape began to move in a blur around him and still he went faster. He looked to his side for a moment and saw Merida was keeping pace easily with her broom, and was gaining ground. Soon they were both struggling to gain any advantage in the race, always getting a few metres ahead of the other only to be outdistanced a second later.

Rapunzel and Hiccup lingered behind on their slower brooms, carrying the lunch between them, and watched with amusement at the other two speeding away. Hiccup was clearly uncomfortable on his broom, at least in comparison to Rapunzel who was riding her broom quite gracefully considering it kept stuttering in the air.

'It's not as fun as flying a dragon,' Hiccup told her when asked, squirming into a better position, 'I've just got really used to using a saddle is all.'

'You should have brought Toothless,' she called over to him.

'He and I could outrace those two for sure,' Hiccup said wistfully, 'but I decided to leave him in Berk to keep dad company, he didn't really like the look of the floo network.'

They both saw Merida and Jack dive into the trees of the forest and presumed they'd arrived at the place Merida had told them about. Slowly the two flew after them and eventually arrived above a small clearing were Jack and Merida had already landed and were clearly arguing with one another.

As they landed Hiccup and Rapunzel could hear that they were arguing about who had won and smiled at each other as they began to unpack the food. The area they stood in was an almost perfect circle devoid of trees on a slight rise to the surroundings. It had clearly once been of some significance to a pagan religion as a stone circle outlined the natural one, each menhir was carved with an intricate array of symbols that ran across the entire surface of each stone.

'I won, I got here before you!'

'Like hell ye did, I was ahead of ye the whole flight!'

'I didn't even know where the finish line was and I still did better.'

'Oh please, I saw a _butterfly_ outpace ya at one point.'

'How could you have seen that unless you were behind me genius?'

'Do either of you want some food?' Hiccup called out to them.

'Not now Hiccup!' The two yelled back simultaneously before stopping and realising what he'd said.

They turned together and saw Hiccup and Rapunzel already sitting and eating, the two feeding Pascal different fruits and laughing as the chameleon changed to the colour of whatever he'd eaten.

'You started without us?' Jack asked in a fake hurt tone as he sat down next to Hiccup while Merida sat on the other side of him, their argument momentarily forgotten. 'So what are we having?'

* * *

It was an hour later and the four were all sitting or lying around in the clearing, digesting the meal happily. Jack had fallen asleep with his head resting in his hands, breathing deeply and slowly. Hiccup was drawing in his sketchpad with a piece of charcoal, resting his back against a menhir, oblivious to the outside world while he focused on his work.

Merida and Rapunzel were talking to each other, sitting cross legged, and were watching Hiccup with interest. It seemed to them that his eyes kept straying to the sleeping figure of Jack before returning to his sketch.

'Jack was right, the lad's definitely filled out a bit more,' Merida mused as she looked over the slightly less thin figure that was Hiccup.

'Did you see how he reacted when Jack mentioned it?' Rapunzel asked conspiratorially.

'Oh yeah but he's always been a little shy when it comes ta himself. It might not mean _anythin'_,' Merida replied before smirking at the look on Rapunzel's face, 'but _if_ we're right then I bet they'll be the last ta figure it out.'

'Agreed,' Rapunzel giggled, 'Hey, what's that?'

She pointed towards the treeline between two menhirs where the shadows of the forest just began to appear and there, in the shadow of a tree, a blue fiery light glowed. Merida sat up to look and stiffened at the sight of the thing.

'It's a wisp,' she breathed excitedly, 'my mum says that they lead you ta yer fate.'

As they watched, the wisp vanished and was replaced by another several feet above it, or maybe it was the same one, the two couldn't tell as it looked exactly the same. The wisps repeated themselves twice more, first starting at ground level and disappearing for another to appear higher up.

'Our fate is in the sky?' Rapunzel tried to translate. 'Maybe it's saying your fate is to be a quidditch player, that's some good news huh?' She joked, nudging Merida as she did.

Merida remained quiet and Rapunzel could almost feel the girl's body go rigid as she touched her. Merida hadn't been looking up like Rapunzel but was instead staring straight ahead into the trees of the forests. Rapunzel stained her eyes to see into the gloom but couldn't spot anything to provoke such a reaction in Merida. Her mind began to flash back to a year ago in the Forbidden Forest and the sight of Pitch Black standing over Jack, surrounded in darkness with his Nightmare sentries at his side.

'What is it Merida,' she asked in a worried tone.

Before Merida could answer a patch of forest split away from the landscape and hurtled through the tree line and into the clearing in one great crashing leap with a roar that shook the clearing.

'Mordu,' Merida said simply, her voice tinged with fear.

It was a bear, the biggest animal Rapunzel had ever seen, large enough to stand at the same height as the girls on all fours with paws the size of their heads. Its flanks were scarred and pierced with arrows and spears from previous opponents while its head was mainly bald with patches of fur clinging to the sides of its jaws, the bare black skin shining from the light of the sun. Its large mouth hung open where the lower lip flapped down to reveal a set of razor sharp teeth that would rip through them in seconds.

Without hesitating the bear charged them, massive muscles flowing along its shoulders like tectonic plates crashing together. The girls screamed and flung themselves out of its way just in time. They both fumbled in their pockets for their wands and drew them, their hands trembling at the thought of how useless these small sticks must appear to such a large monster.

As Mordu turned they both flung spells at it which hit its side square on. The bear roared and shook its flanks like a dog shaking off water before charging them again and this time they weren't going to be fast enough to dodge.

'Incendir!' Hiccup cried and tongues of flame blasted around Mordu who roared defiance at this new enemy and began to bite and rip at the fire around it. It seemed to work too as the fire began to die away as it was torn apart by the bear like an animal. When the fires died out Mordu turned towards Hiccup and swiped him down with one swing, before Hiccup could right himself the bear bit down on his artificial leg and flung him with enough force to knock Hiccup back into the menhir he'd been resting on where he lay still.

_He just shakes of magic like it's nothing,_ Merida thought desperately. _What are we supposed to do?_

'Hiccup!' Jack called out as he scrambled up from where he'd been resting, finally woken by the commotion. He prepared a spell in his mind but realised he'd left his staff back in the quidditch shed when they'd flown off. _Stupid, stupid, _he told himself angrily as he tried to find a way of getting round the bear to help Hiccup.

Mordu began too lumber forward towards Hiccup to finish the boy off but was distracted by the spells fired by Rapunzel and Merida, bouncing off its flank like rain. Enraged and reminded of his original target, Mordu turned and began to advance back towards the girls giving Jack an opportunity to run to Hiccup and wake him up.

Merida and Rapunzel were being pushed back by Mordu who shook off any spell they fired at him as if they were flies. Suddenly with a great turn of speed the bear ran forward, knocking Rapunzel aside with a lazy back hand of its paw. It advanced to Merida who was still desperately firing spells at the monster, but to no avail, and with one swipe of its paw she was knocked to the ground and winded.

As she gasped for breath Mordu was on her, pressing down her body with a single paw and looking straight down at her, its muzzle mere inches away from her face. She smelled the foul stench on its breath and began to feel tears fall down her face as she looked into Mordu's mouth and realised how easily the bear would kill her, that Mordu could close his mouth around her head and never stop until it cracked like an egg.

'**Aw, poor little Merida,'** a voice said mockingly and it only took Merida a few seconds to realise it had come from the _bear_. His mouth hadn't moved to do so but a voice was coming from him nonetheless, a voice that sounded like a boulder grinding across a mountainside.

'Ye can talk?' Merida gasped in horror at the realisation.

'**Yes. Mummy and daddy never told their little girl the whole truth about the Demon-Bear did they?' **Mordu jeered cruelly as he added pressure to her chest, slowly crushing the air from her body with ease. **'You know, when I first met you, you were crying. When you were a baby you never stopped bawling like a spoiled brat and when we met again the day I crippled your father you were just the same stupid little baby as you were then, but daddy isn't here to save you **_**this time.**_**'**

Mordu opened his mouth wide to reveal his fangs in their full glory and descended to bite into Merida's head whole. Merida felt the last drops of tears brush down across her cheek in one final caress as the fangs came towards her, the last two things she would ever feel and see.

That was about when the tree hit Mordu and knocked the bear off Merida before he had a chance to bite, sending him tumbling out of the stone circle and back into the forest. It wasn't just part of a tree but a whole tree that had been ripped from the ground, earth still clinging to its roots, and it hit Mordu in one mighty swing. The bear roared; rearing on his hind legs to stand at his full height he brought down his front paws to smash the tree apart.

Merida felt herself being picked up by two sets of hands and looked back to see Jack and Hiccup each pulling her up by an arm and dragging her towards the brooms they'd left stacked against a menhir. She looked around for Rapunzel and saw her with her wand raised to direct the last fragments of the tree into Mordu's eyes. Merida knew immediately that it was her that had thrown the tree, only Rapunzel's wingardium leviosa spell was strong enough to rip an oak out of the earth and throw it. The bear roared in challenge to Rapunzel and began to run forward to pummel her into the ground.

Quickly Rapunzel flicked her wand and yelled out a series of spells that caused giant roots to erupt from the ground beneath Mordu before he could reach the first menhir, tangling with his legs, his chest and his head, trying to pull him down towards the ground with them. Mordu roared in anger and began to bite and cut at the roots, pulling himself free even as Rapunzel and Pascal grabbed their broom and the four zoomed upwards into the air and out of Mordu's reach, his roars of anger following them as they skimmed over the treeline.

'Those wisps were trying to tell us to get away,' she said to the trembling Pascal as the last roars faded away. 'There was no way we could have survived a fight with that thing.'

Jack and Hiccup stayed close to Merida's sides in case she fell from her broom. She was pale and shivering from the shock of escaping death by an inch, something that Jack knew all too well. Suddenly she leaned over the side of her broom and retched; losing the lunch she'd eaten only a few minutes ago.

'We need to warn my dad,' she croaked as she sat back up, colour returning to her face as she regained her usual strength and composure.

* * *

It was a week later and the first of September had arrived. The four had piled into the train and had found a place to sit together. As it turned out the last week of the holiday hadn't been as fun as they'd hoped, on hearing that Mordu had returned Fergus had ordered that no one step into the forest and had sent Jack, Hiccup and Rapunzel home for their own safety, leaving them all alone again until today.

Merida had asked her parents about what they knew of Mordu but they didn't say anything they hadn't told her already.

'Look, I heard him talk and I want to know why!' She had eventually yelled in frustration.

'People hear strange things when they're in danger Merida,' her mother had tried to reason, 'you just thought you heard Mordu speak but he wasn't really.'

Merida believed this about as much as she believed Jack when he had told her he'd killed a troll at the age of five. It was the way Elinor and Fergus had _looked_ at each other, with worry and something that looked a lot like dread. Did they really think she didn't notice or that she wouldn't believe the testimony of her own ears?

That night she sent Angus out with a letter that read – _Rapunzel,_ _I need to find out more about Mordu but they won't tell me anything at home. You're the best at researching stuff and you know the library better than anyone so will you please help me find something at Hogwarts? Merida._

Two days passed by and then Angus returned with a reply – _Of course I'll help but don't expect too much, I've read a lot of bestiaries and I've never seen a reference to a demon-bear before so I'm not sure how much the library can offer. See you soon, Rapunzel._

Now Merida sat back as the train slowed and looked out the windows towards the dark towers of Hogwarts that were beginning to appear above the trees. Mordu had known her _name_; he'd said he knew her as a baby. He must have been closer to her family than her parents were letting on and they weren't saying how or why. Merida was being kept in the dark and she wanted to know why, she was going to get answers and nothing would stop her.

* * *

**I know I should have said this sooner but thank you all for the positive reviews for this fic, they're really encouraging and I'm so glad for them :)**

**In case any of you were wondering, menhir is just another word for standing stone which just sounds more ancient and mystical to me so I put it in :P**

**Also, yay, quidditch chapters soon and new third year classes to explore. What do you guys think the four have chosen?**

**Thank you all again and have a great week :)**

**Edit: Woops I forgot to mention my inspiration for the chapter's Hijack scene came from Fluffy-fuzzy-ears artwork 'Big Four'(just imagine Rapunzel with the long hair) **


	9. The Try-outs

**The Try-outs**

The four sat at their usual small table in the kitchens as the house-elves ran around them, carrying plates and dishes to be set for the Sunday morning breakfast that would begin upstairs at any moment.

'You're all in rather early today,' Grindl squeaked as he ran past, his arms laden with a plate loaded with a pile of bacon that towered over his head.

'Merida and I have quidditch try-outs today,' Jack yelled after him, nodding towards the two brooms leaning on the table.

'Jack's got his first thing this morning and then it's Gryffindor before lunch,' Merida clarified as the elf raced back to fetch more forks.

'And we're here to support them,' Hiccup added while Rapunzel nodded, her mouth currently full.

'How is that going to work, if you don't mind my asking?' a second, female elf called Elise asked as she passed them. 'After all you are from different houses.'

Elise was Grindl's wife, or at least they were the closest thing to married that house-elves got. The ceremony had been set in the four's second year and both had invited the four which meant that they had been the first humans to see a house-elf wedding for over fifty years. It had been a short ceremony where Merida had NOT CRIED, followed by a moderate feast cooked by the bride and groom themselves.

'Rapunzel and I are going to wear our normal house colours but she's painting red and gold stripes on her cheeks for Merida and I'm painting mine green and silver for Jack,' Hiccup told her, having to swivel in his seat awkwardly to keep Elise in view as she passed.

'That way they both get a supporter and we can still cheer for our own houses at the same time,' Rapunzel added as she twirled her blue and bronze Ravenclaw scarf in her fingers.

The kitchens began to settle down then as the food and drinks vanished from the tables and reappeared above, giving the elves some rest time before their next duties. Grindl and Elise sat at the table and asked if they might eat with the four.

'Grindl, it's been two years, ye don't have to ask our permission ta eat with us,' Merida groaned in exasperation. House-elves may have gained better rights but they hadn't fully mastered the idea of equality yet.

'How are your new lessons?' Grindl asked after Merida was forced to give permission to let them sit. 'You were all very excited about them yesterday.'

'Arithmancy was fantastic,' Rapunzel replies excitedly, 'it's _so_ interesting, it's all about using magical and mathematical formula to predict the future. I prefer it to Divination although Merida seemed to hate it more.'

'Ha! Damn right. That crack pot Trelawney told me I was goin' ta die but I didn't believe her for a minute.'

'Yes you did, you only stopped shivering after Toothiana told you Trelawney said it to a student every year,' Hiccup reminded her helpfully.

'How would you know Haddock? Ye don't even take Divination!'

'Trelawney kept looking at me funnily,' Rapunzel mused, 'Do you remember what she was like when she saw me Merida? She would keep looking over at me and she got really excited over when I saw something in the tea leaves.'

'She's crazy,' was all Merida could give in answer. 'And Ancient Runes isn't any easier; I have to learn to translate the damn things by readin' all these musty old books.'

Merida wasn't sure why she'd chosen Study of Ancient Runes in the first place, she only chose Divination because it had seemed easy at the time but it was as if she had been drawn to Ancient Runes like a moth to flame.

'I told her it was a bad choice,' Jack told the elves, 'She should have come to Care for Magical Creatures with me and Hiccup, although Hiccup was a total show off.'

'I just know a lot about magical creatures is all,' Hiccup protested, 'After all, I _was_ apprenticed to the teacher for most of my life.'

'He was totally showing off,' Jack whispered to Rapunzel and Pascal who both giggled at the look of indignation on Hiccup's face.

'Shouldn't we get going anyway,' Hiccup huffed in annoyance as Merida joined in with the laughter.

'Aye, Hiccup's right you're gonna be late Jack,' Merida agreed, still smirking slightly.

'Good luck at the try-outs,' Grindl and Elise called aster them they left.

'Thanks, and thanks for the food as usual,' Jack called back as the painting closed off the kitchen entrance.

The four hurried down the corridor and back up the stairs that would lead to the exit to the courtyard. They ran out into the morning sunlight, probably some of the last sun they'd see as autumn and winter took hold. They began to head down to the quidditch pitch until Jack sprang into the air in his excitement and whipped up the winds to propel him faster towards the pitch, forcing the others to run after him. It was because of this that he ended up arriving five minutes early for the start of the try-outs anyway and had to wait for the others to catch up, panting as they did.

'Come on guys, hurry up it's going to start at any minute,' he urged as the three caught their breath, leaning on the wall or resting their hands on their knees.

'Go on without us Jack, we have to watch from the stands anyway,' Rapunzel returned, pushing him towards the entrance to the pitch.

Jack gave them all one final look as they hurried up the stairs of one of the raised stands to get good spots before turning and heading out onto the pitch. There were a few applicants already ahead of him and they were all lining up in front of the current Slytherin quidditch captain James Turner. He took his place among the rest of the applicants, holding tightly on to his new Nimbus 3000 in eagerness for flight.

'Well, well, well. If it isn't Jack Frost,' said a voice Jack recognized immediately.

'Mulcaster, I thought I smelled something rotten,' Jack replied jovially to the fourth year who was leering down at him.

'You're not honestly going to try out for this are you?' Mulcaster sneered, 'You need to have some actual talent at flying to even have a chance at being accepted.'

'And yet you're still here,' Jack replied calmly, causing some of the other applicants to chuckle hesitantly until Mulcaster gave them a silencing look.

'Make jokes while you can Frost, there's no way they're going to let a muggle-lover on the team,' Mulcaster taunted, making Jack's fist clench just a little tighter around his broom.

Before he had a chance to reply the last applicant arrived and the try-outs began. James ticked off the last name from the applicant list and stepped forward to address the nine students standing before him.

'For those of you who don't know, I'm James Turner the team captain,' he began, walking back and forth in front of the students. 'We've got an opening for a seeker and a chaser this year so we're going to start off with some routine passes to warm you up for the tougher stuff.'

He and the nine, as well as the two chasers already part of the team who were helping out, rose into the air. One of the team's beaters, Thomas Carrington, opened the chest that contained the quidditch balls and tossed up two quaffles to the chasers. The aim of the first exercise was to catch the ball the chaser threw to you and throw it back, easier said than done as the chasers made their tosses more difficult with each round eventually forcing applicants to dive and swerve to catch the ball before it hit the ground.

Several applicants dropped their quaffle as the exercise grew steadily harder but Jack caught all of his, diving, swooping and in one case spinning in a loop before throwing the quaffle back at the chaser. Mulcaster was doing well too, he hadn't dropped any balls yet either and the two were soon the only two able to keep up with the chasers who continuously added extra velocity and spin to each throw. Eventually James stopped the exercise when he'd seen enough before either Mulcaster or Jack could drop a single ball which made Jack grit his teeth as he'd hoped to beat Mulcaster at the first opportunity he had.

After that the applicants had to fly through different sized hoops that magically raised themselves to fly above the pitch, some wide enough to let three in at a time and some so small Jack could barely fit through them as he flew. Finally, their last test was to catch small practice snitches that James and the chasers threw erratically around the field. None of the applicants could catch one except Jack and Mulcaster. Jack had caught three of the small orbs and could see James throw the last one of the lot high into the air.

He lifted the head of his broom upwards and zoomed after it, the air roaring in his ears as he accelerated. Mulcaster flashed in front of him suddenly and he was forced to pull back to prevent a crash. He scowled angrily and urged his broom to go faster as Mulcaster gained on the small orb.

Suddenly he felt it, a small but significant change in the air currents that signalled the winds were going to change. He'd grown so used to controlling the winds to fly that he had begun to learn to read the air currents subconsciously and right now they were telling him that the wind was going to change course at any moment. He smiled and let Mulcaster pull ahead, hearing the cheer of triumph from the boy who believed he was victorious as he reached out to grab his prize. The winds changed right then, blowing in from the west and causing the ball to slip away from Mulcaster's fingers. It began to fall back to the ground away from Mulcaster, who was desperately trying to turn his broom around in time to fly after it, and right towards Jack. He met the ball coming up as it fell and caught it in one hand, raising it up in victory he heard the cheers below him from the others who were all waving or clapping their hands in praise.

He descended ahead of the cursing Mulcaster and handed his four balls to James, who nodded approvingly and joined the rest of the applicants who were watching him with a mixture of the usual disdain and an admiration that they probably hoped he wouldn't see. Mulcaster joined them a second later, scowling at Jack as James placed his three practice snitches back in their pouch.

'Good work all of you,' James told them happily, 'I'm going to spend a few minutes discussing my choices with the rest of the team and then I'll tell you the final decision.'

At that he went into a huddle with the rest of the quidditch team and all of the members began to talk animatedly at once while the applicants began to mutter quiet encouragement to each other.

'They're going to make me seeker for sure,' Mulcaster boasted at Jack who rolled his eyes in response.

He looked over at the stands and saw the others standing at the edge of one waving down and giving him thumbs up in encouragement. He smiled and waved back happily in response as the Slytherin team broke apart and James walked back to the applicants.

'It's settled then,' he announced cheerily, 'for the chaser we've decided Ted Mulcaster and the seeker will be Jack Frost.'

'What!' Mulcaster yelled in anger as Jack punched the air in joy at the news, not only was he seeker but in addition Mulcaster wasn't going to be, which just made the appointment that much sweeter.

'For those of you who didn't make it, please apply to act as subs for our team if you want,' James continued, speaking to the rest of the applicants whose faces shared similar looks of disappointment which did lighten at the unspoken compliment that James still thought they were good enough to play for the team.

'Now you two can join us,' James told Jack and the dumbstruck Mulcaster as the others left, 'we're going to stay on to watch the Gryffindor try-outs. It's always good to get a look at the enemy's new recruits.'

He led them to one side of the pitch that acted as the entrance to the Slytherin changing rooms as well as an area to watch the match with wooden seats lining the walls that would be protected from most of the wind. He sat Jack and Mulcaster down and introduced them to the rest of the team who waved and said hello before turning to watch the Gryffindor team stroll onto the field, followed by their own applicants, Merida among them.

She looked around her at the other applicants who either ignored her or gave her the usual look of general dislike that the house seemed to have reserved specially for her and the others. After five minutes of preparation the Gryffindor captain walked over and addressed them like James had the Slytherins. Her name was Alice Chang, a seventh year, who looked each of the applicants over appraisingly as if to judge their skill from the way they stood alone.

Eventually, however, she smiled and thanked them all for coming in a kindly but business-like tone. From what Merida had heard while Chang was a fun person to hang out with she took the game very seriously and would work her team hard every training session to ready them for a match. Merida remembered watching some of the team coming in from a practice session that had been booked during a hail storm, soaked in water, sweat and mud, so exhausted they barely had the energy to crawl through the entrance way.

'We've got three openings this year for a keeper, chaser and beater. Could you all organise yourselves into two groups, one for chasers and keepers over here and the other for beaters over there,' she indicated two separate spots and there was a short scramble as everyone except Merida went to the chaser spot.

'What? Only one beater applicant?' Alice asked in surprise before shrugging and saying jokingly to Merida, 'Oh well, we'll just have to hope you're good.'

'You can go and work with our other beater and he'll test if you right for the job,' she added, pointing to another team member before returning to the chaser and keeper applicants.

Slightly miffed, Merida walked over to the guy that Alice had pointed out, a fourth year that she had seen around but never spoken too before. He was a tall, lanky boy with red hair like Merida, except his was closer to orange than her crimson tangles. He smiled at her as she approached and shook her hand in mock professional enthusiasm when she got close enough.

'Fred Weasley,' he said by way of introduction.

'Merida Dunbroch,'

'So you must be here because you want to smash some balls,' Fred joked cheerily as the group behind her began to mount their brooms.

Merida tried and failed to stifle a snort which made Fred smile even more. He took her over to the side of the pitch while the rest of the applicants were flying around one of the goal posts, performing catches and scores.

'Aren't you the girl who hangs out with the Slytherin and those other two all the time?' He asked with interest as he stopped and began to undo the latches of the trunk.

'Yeah, what of it?' Merida asked a little angrily.

'I'm a fan of your work,' he told her, smiling. 'You guys are pretty inventive when it comes to practical jokes.'

'We don't do it all the time,' Merida replied defensively, 'just when someone deserves it.'

Fred laughed at that as he opened the trunk and revealed the two bludgers straining at the straps that kept them tightly imprisoned.

'How do you feel at giving these bad boys a try?' he asked temptingly as he began to undo the straps. 'I'll release them and we can fly up and give them a good few hits, just so you can prove to me that you're worthy of joining the ranks of Alice's quidditch bitches.

'Bring it,' Merida challenged as she grabbed a bat and leapt on her Cinderbolt to rise into the air.

With a final pull from Fred the last straps were free and a bludger soared up into the sky, soon joined by Fred who rose to meet Merida, his own bat in hand.

They could see the bludger soar around one of the goal posts and turn to barrel down towards the two, accelerating eagerly to knock them off their brooms.

'It's all yours,' Fred called to Merida as it neared.

Merida readied herself as the ball closed in on her, raising the bat in preparation. With one swing she sent the bludger flying back and through the central goal post with a loud THWACK that echoed across the pitch. Hiccup and Rapunzel cheered at the sound and pumped their fists in the air in support of Merida who was circling round to get another shot at the bludger as it returned.

'Holy hell,' Fred said, impressed.

'Did you hear that?' James said to the Slytherins watching Merida take another successful shot, 'We're going to have to keep an eye on her.'

'That'll be easy for Jack,' Mulcaster taunted from the side, 'he's friends with that Gryffindor.'

'Really? Great, maybe she'll go easy on you in a match,' James said eagerly to Jack to Mulcaster's dismay.

'Somehow I don't think so,' Jack replied as he watched Merida deliver another strong blow to the bludger as it went for her side.

After another twenty minutes of hitting the ball around Fred and Merida descended, Fred wrestling with the bludger until he managed to trap it back into its usual spot in the trunk where it vibrated angrily against the clasps.

'That was great!' he cheered happily, 'You're definitely in, no question.'

Merida whooped in joy and hugged Fred quickly before racing off to tell the others with a blushing Fred yelling after her, 'Alice will put practice times on the board in the common room, don't be late!'

'I'm in!' She cried as she neared Hiccup and Rapunzel who cheered along with her as Jack ran over from the Slytherin area.

'Don't think I'm goin' ta go easy on ye Frost,' Merida added as he arrived, making him laugh.

'I wouldn't have it any other way,' Jack said happily, 'Now who wants to go get some lunch? I'm starving.'

'It'll have to be quick, Merida and I are going to the library again today,' Rapunzel told them as they began to head back the way they'd come a few hours before.

'Wow, Merida going to the library willingly. I never thought I'd see the day,' Hiccup joked, hiding behind the others as Merida tried to punch him.

* * *

By the end of the day Merida and Rapunzel hadn't found anything, their search was becoming more desperate every week as they began to run out of any book that concerned magical beasts and beings. They'd had to call it a day after Merida began to see white flashes in front of her eyes whenever she looked at a page and Rapunzel had left to spend some extra time at the hospital wing, leaving Merida to entertain herself for a while.

Jack and Hiccup had gone out to see who was faster, Toothless or the Nimbus, and had spent the rest of the day racing one another outside. Merida wondered pleasantly if a race was the only reason Hiccup wanted to spend time with Jack before shaking off the thought and heading out to the courtyard for a walk.

As she stepped outside she was intercepted by Fred Weasley who called out to her from the Grand Staircase.

'Hey Fred,' she said as he caught up, 'what's up?'

'Want to see something cool?' He asked mysteriously, holding out his hand for her to take.

Merida looked him over warily for a second, unsure of where Fred was going to take her and in any case she wasn't sure if she was willing to just let him pull her along by the hand. After thinking it over for a second she shrugged and took his hand, allowing him to take her through a series of corridors and down a number of stairs until they arrived at a door marked **Trophy Room.**

'Quidditch trophies?' Merida asked sceptically. 'I was hoping for somethin' a little cooler.'

'Trust me,' Fred laughed, 'you'll know what I mean when you see it.'

He opened the door to reveal a room stacked with glass cases of trophies and medals as well as the armoured statues that lined much of Hogwarts. Fred guided her to a case in the middle that contained a large trophy and a picture of the team that won it.

Merida looked closely and saw written along the plaque at the base of the trophy – **Fergus Dunbroch.** She turned to look at the moving picture propped next to it and saw her father twenty years younger. He hadn't grown his stubbly beard and moustache yet but a smattering of stubble around his cheeks suggested it soon would be a reality. He stood in the middle of his team and was pushing them playfully, clearly just victorious in his last game. Merida thought something about him looked strange until she realised he had both legs back then, the left one would only be lost later when defending her.

'I knew I'd heard the name Dunbroch before,' Fred told her enthusiastically as she stepped back to see the trophy and photo together. 'You're father was a beater too, like mine.'

'Alright, it is pretty cool,' Merida conceded as he beamed at her.

'Told you,' Fred returned proudly before looking back at the photo and asking, 'Do you know who the two in the back are? I think this is the only photo here that has more than just the team.'

Merida looked back and saw the man and woman Fred was pointing at. They were standing to the side a little as if they had been waiting for one of the team and hadn't realised they were caught in the picture. Recognising one Merida pointed to the woman and said certainly, 'That one's my mum.'

She knew it as easily as she knew the back of her own hand. She could see through twenty years of change that Elinor still held herself in the same dignified way she did today. Her face was less aged in the photo but still clearly that of her mother and her hair was shorter than it was today. Merida watched her for some time with curiosity, she'd never really thought of her mother at a young age before and it was…strange to see what she had been like.

'I don't know the other one,' she continued as she tore her eyes from her mother and focused on the man. He was large, like Fergus was, with black hair and his own black stubble beginning to grow across his face.

'What is it?' Fred asked curiously as she continued to stare at the man as if hypnotized.

'I don't know, I've never seen him before but it's like I recognise him,' Merida answered, still looking at the man who barely moved as he watched Fergus and his team horse around.

Suddenly a banging and the sound of footsteps came from the doorway making both of them start and breaking Merida out of her near trance. They looked at their watches and realised they'd stayed too long and curfew had begun as the echo of the footsteps came closer.

'Shit, it's probably Filch,' Fred hissed.

'Quickly, hide here,' Merida ordered pointing to a space between two cabinets that would just fit them and keep them out of sight from Filch as long as he didn't look too carefully around the room. They hurried and squeezed into the gap, barely breathing as the footsteps came closer and stopped at the door.

* * *

**Sorry this chapter took so long. The last few days have been really busy and I had a small case of writer's block but, no worries, we're back on track.**

**Anyway, yay, Fred the Second's appearance. I had wanted to have this character in the story because the death of the first Fred really took me by surprise so when I found out George had a son he named Fred I couldn't resist but make him a character :P**

**Until next time, see you guys and thanks for reading :)**


	10. The Book

**The Book**

Merida and Fred waited in the cramped space between two trophy cases as the footsteps outside grew steadily closer. They barely breathed as the steps echoed right outside the door in fear even the sound of their breath would be heard by Filch. The sound stopped in front of the door for a moment before carrying on down the corridor, the sounds of footsteps now leading away from them.

The two redheads let out a long sigh of relief as they stepped out from their small hiding spot. Before Merida could say anything, Fred darted over to the door and opened it a crack to peek out.

'What are ye doin'?' Merida hissed at him as he looked out.

'I just want to see who's walking about after curfew,' he whispered back cheerily, the idea of getting in trouble never crossing his mind.

'You're goin' ta get us caught,' Merida told him as she surreptitiously joined him at the door to see who it was.

Walking down the corridor she could see two figures, one in a large red robe edged in white and the other with a robe covered in shiny bangles from head to foot, Professors North and Trelawney. Trelawney was talking animatedly to North who was nodding with a polite interest. Fred began to tiptoe after them, ignoring Merida's silent waves of protest and tugging her to follow him.

They sneaked through the shadows of the corridor, keeping close to the walls so as not to get attention, and soon they were close enough to hear what the teachers were discussing.

'I sensed it the moment she stepped into my room,' Trelawney was saying to North.

'Is that so?' North asked in the same kindly tone that people used when talking to a senile old grandmother.

'Her gift is so strong it may well outshine my own in time,' Trelawney continued as the two turned a corner and their voices faded away.

'What do you think that was about?' Fred whispered to Merida as they stepped away from the suit of armour they'd been hiding behind.

'I don't know what that woman's talkin' about half the time,' Merida shrugged as Fred began to look for something in his robe pockets.

'It's goin' ta take us ages to sneak back to the common room without gettin' caught,' she complained as realisation dawned on her that they were several flights below the floor where the Fat Lady hung. They would certainly end up running into a teacher or worse the Bloody Baron.

'Not to worry, I have this,' Fred said as he triumphantly pulled out a piece of brown parchment from his robes.

'Explain,' Merida demanded as she stared at the blank paper. She hadn't known Fred long but she doubted that he just carried unimportant pieces of parchment around with him unless it had some other purpose.

With a flourish and a look of mock seriousness on his face Fred tapped his wand against the paper and said, 'I solemnly swear that I am up to no good.' At once ink began to run down the paper, drawing themselves into what looked like a map where small markers moved about with a name listed below them. Merida looked closely and saw two with the names Merida Dunbroch and Fred Weasley standing in a perfectly accurate drawing of the corridor they were standing in, with two other markers heading away from them named Nicholas St. North and Sybil Trelawney. At the top of the page she read, The Marauders Map mark ll, drawn by Fred and George Weasley.

'My dad made it with his brother,' Fred told her as she continued to stare, 'They stole the original from Filch's office and memorized it before passing it on. They wrote this one with any additions that the original map didn't have.'

'So you're Fred the second?'

'Yeah, he was my dad's twin brother. He died during the battle of Hogwarts,' Fred answered a small amount of real solemnity edging his voice. 'Anyway, this thing can show us any secret passages so we won't get caught.'

'Let's get goin' then,' Merida said happily as they followed the map to the end of the corridor and opened a hidden door to reveal a tight spiral staircase. Soon they had arrived at the portrait of the Fat Lady without encountering any problem on the way.

'Lily sprouts,' Merida said to the Lady as Fred hid the map back in his robe pocket.

'I hear you're our new beater, well done,' The Lady congratulated as she swung open to reveal the entrance to the corridor.

'Thanks,' Merida replied as she crawled in.

The common room was still pretty full at this time of night and large groups of people stared when they saw Fred was with the house's social outcast. Several groups began to mutter curiously to each other, still staring unabashed at the two although Fred either didn't notice or ignored them

'So, I'll see you at practice then,' Fred said to her as he headed towards one group who were sitting by the fire.

'Yeah, thanks for showin' me all that, it was fun,' Merida returned as she began to walk up to the girls dormitories.

'No problem, don't forget to look up practice times, Alice turns into a real troll if you're late,' he called after her.

'I'll do what Fred?'

'Oh, hi Alice,'

Merida chuckled as she heard Fred unsuccessfully try to explain himself to a fuming Alice before opening the door to the third year dormitory and cutting off Alice's angry reply.

* * *

'No way, it's your turn to take her,' Jack complained to Hiccup as they stood waiting outside the potions classroom.

'You know the rules, I won the race and I get to decide your punishment,' Hiccup laughed as Jack glared angrily at him. Jack had become increasingly frustrated during their race that no matter how fast his Nimbus moved it just couldn't outpace a nightfury at full speed. He'd eventually made a bet with Hiccup that whoever won their last race would get to decide a punishment for the other in the hopes that it would give him the incentive to win. Unfortunately it hadn't been enough, he'd got so close to outpacing Toothless but the black dragon simply flapped his wings a few more times and sped away even faster than before, so he lost the bet and now he was paying the price.

'But you can't put me with Merida, she's awful at potions,' he moaned at the unfairness of the situation.

'Hey, I had the worst of it,' Hiccup reminded him, 'It took days after that first lesson for my freckles to stop glowing.'

'Suck it up Jack, you're just going to have to deal with it,' Rapunzel told him as Pascal giggled on her shoulder.

'I am standin' right here guys,' Merida reminded them angrily as the doors opened and the class began to file in.

As usual only the front tables were left when the four walked in, forcing them to walk between lines of the usual glaring or uninterested students until they reached their cauldrons.

'Well if it isn't our new seeker,' Professor Whittler said as Jack sat resignedly next to Merida. 'Well done laddie, I expect to see that house cup on my mantelpiece this year.'

'Thanks professor, it's a real honour,' Jack said, grinning as he knew some of Mulcaster's cronies would be scowling at him from across the room for saying that.

'Well you've all done the homework for brewin' the cure for a manticore bite,' Whittler continued, addressing the whole class now.

'Some better than others,' the raven on her desk croaked as it looked at Jack, Merida and a few other students.

'So now all ye have ta do is brew it,' Whittler stated after swatting at the bird with her hand, 'chop, chop. Get on with it.'

There was the usual rush as students went to gather the necessary supplies and returned with their arms full of interesting looking roots and powders. Everyone returned to their desks and began looking through their textbooks for the recipe except for Rapunzel who had already directed Hiccup to dice several roots while she organised the first splashes of potion.

Merida set to work with a purposeful look on her face. They didn't think she could cook up a potion? Well she'd show them. If the book says tear up the mandrake root then you tear the mandrake root which she began to do with a ferocity that suggested the roots had committed a great wrong against her.

Jack had already begun to pour a few potions into the cauldron and was stirring them energetically. Merida grabbed the torn up mandrake roots and pushed Jack out the way and began to fling the roots in the liquid with one hand while she stirred it with a large metal spoon in the other.

'Merida what are you doing?' Jack asked in surprise.

'We're supposed to put in torn mandrake's roots next,' Merida explained angrily.

'Those aren't Mandrake…!'

The rest of what Jack was going to say was lost when a loud BANG boomed out of the cauldron and much of the contents spewed up in a geyser of potion. When it was over Merida was standing in front of a smoking cauldron with the handle of a melted spoon still in her hand. The rest of the class were getting on with their work, the minor explosions that Merida caused every now and then had stopped being surprising after a while.

'Merida Dunbroch! That is the fifth time this term!' Whittler yelled in exasperation as Merida dropped the remains of the spoon into the cauldron. 'Just go get another spoon and whatever you've used up from the store room and start again, this time with the _right_ ingredients.'

Merida nodded and stomped angrily over to the open store room. Alright, so who cared if she wasn't any good at potions, it was a stupid subject anyway and she was doing great in Transfiguration and, thanks to their weekly extra lessons with Professor Maximus, she and Jack were top of every Defence Against the Dark Arts class.

She rifled through the supplies in the store until she found a new stirring spoon and grabbed the replacement ingredients; she turned to leave when her eye caught something. It was a small book that had been wedged between two old textbooks, almost hidden amongst the larger tomes. What had caught her eye was that the cover was decorated with drawings of bears which in itself was not particularly strange, Professor Whittler's strange obsession with making bear shaped carvings was well known. These were different to her usual work though because on closer inspection the bears didn't look like bears at all but rather the shadows of bears cast on a cave wall by a fire, twisted and gnarled into more terrible and nightmarish shapes than anything natural could look.

She pulled the book out from its place and looked at the cover, unlike the spine the cover only had the drawing of one bear shadow, much larger than the others with its claws scratching down the edge of the book as if the image was trying to cut its way out. She opened the book and read the title written in large messy letters – _The path to becoming the True King._

It looked interesting so Merida snuck it into her robes and walked back out into the classroom. In the few minutes she'd been gone Rapunzel and Hiccup had already nearly completed their final ingredients and were just preparing the potion already in the cauldron.

'How come you're so good at this Rapunzel?' Hiccup asked in amazement as Merida passed by while Rapunzel finely cut the newt legs into perfect strips. Her brow, sweating from concentration, was being mopped by Pascal with a tissue as if they were in a surgery rather than a classroom.

'Brewing potions is just like cooking,' Rapunzel told him as she tossed the leg strips into the boiling liquid which immediately turned into the expected silver colour, 'and I used to do a lot of cooking when I was…when I was younger.'

Jack meanwhile had been trying to salvage as much of their potion as he could. When he saw her coming back he smiled and asked, 'Are you alright? Whittler was kind of harsh back there.'

'Eh, I don't care,' Merida replied, sneaking the book into her bag as she dropped the replacement ingredients on the table, 'I've just got a natural flare for explosions is all.'

'You're telling me, the ceiling got charred from that one,' Jack agreed happily as he pointed to a patch of ceiling that was indeed smouldering gently, the stones of the dungeon making plinking noises as they cooled.

'Alright so what she we put in next,' Merida said as they stopped laughing, hoping to get the lesson back on track and prove she had at least some capability to brew a potion.

'It says here we're supposed to use a cup of crushed firewort seeds,' Jack told her as he consulted the book.

'You mean these,' Merida replied as she picked up a bag.

'I don't think those are even seeds Merida,'

* * *

The first quidditch match of the season was between Gryffindor and Ravenclaw this year which meant Alice Change piled as many practice sessions on the team as she could every week. She didn't care what the weather was doing and would force them all out even in the wettest storms and push them all to the brink of their skill and ability before calling it a day and sending them off.

Merida and the rest of the team would return from each one hobbling on tired legs with eyes already closing in attempts at sleep which meant Merida had not yet had a chance to read the book of the True King. It waited hidden under her bed for after the match when Merida would be freed for a short time from practice and had the time to read it.

'Seriously, she's so much fun when we're just watching a game,' Fred had gasped as he and Merida supported one another up the last flight of stairs to the common room after one particularly stressful session.

'It's like she gets possessed or somethin',' Merida agreed as they staggered the last few feet together. Although she complained with the others, Merida found she was really enjoying herself playing with the team. Even though some of them still gave her dirty looks Alice would come down on anyone like a ton of bricks if she thought they would damage the team's performance by ostracising a member too much.

Eventually, of course she would have to prove herself to the more sceptical teammates and that time came on the day of the match. It had lasted for an hour and a half before Alice finally found and caught the snitch to wild cheers from the Gryffindor stadium, winning the game at 240-0. Merida and Fred had been zooming around the pitch non-stop, hitting bludgers to knock down enemy chasers and beaters, and intercepting ones hit towards their own chasers. It had been tiring work but worth it when she landed with the others and had raised Alice on their shoulders in victory as part of the team, everybody forgetting to give her dirty looks for the moment.

She saw the other three too, standing at the edge of one of the platforms and waving small red and gold flags as well as having the same colours smeared across their cheeks as promised. They waved and cheered in front of the crowds and stood out to Merida like three small beacons of joy, making her smile and wave back.

The team had got changed in record time to hurry out and up the Grand Staircase until they reached the common room; there the Gryffindor's had already prepared a small party for them where Alice held the winning snitch in the air like a trophy. Everybody was loud and happy and all were clamouring to give congratulations to the team, some even to Merida although she still got less than the rest of the team.

Suddenly Alice stood up on a table and waved for everyone to quiet down, which they did eventually although there were always small murmurings around the room.

'I'd just like to congratulate the team for our first big win of the season,' she started, yelling to be heard by the entire room as people began to cheer loudly. 'And most of all I'd like to thank the efforts of our beaters Fred and Merida who made sure the Ravenclaws didn't score a single point!'

At that there was an even greater roar of appreciation and Merida felt someone grab her hand and lift it up like she was the winner of a boxing match. She looked around and saw Fred beside her, basking in the attention as people turned to look at them and clapped when they realised who they were. For the first time since her arrival at the school people had forgotten their dislike of Merida although she could see Susan Nix and her gang all sneering at her as usual so it wasn't too different. The cheering died down after Alice stepped off the table and the party resumed.

'That was good work out there,' Fred yelled over to her, giving a thumbs up.

'Thanks, you too,' Merida said as she looked at her watch and realised it was nearly seven. 'Damn! I've got ta go.'

'What? How come?' Fred asked disappointedly.

'I promised the others I'd meet them at seven after the match,' Merida told him as she began to head for the exit.

'Why not stay for one celebration drink,' Fred offered, holding out a glass of pumpkin juice to her, 'just for a toast.'

'Alright, just one,' Merida said as she took the glass, the others wouldn't mind her being a little late.

'I promise I won't keep you away for too long,' Fred reassured her sincerely as he took a swig of his pumpkin juice.

* * *

She arrived in the kitchens just half an hour late as the school bells chimed seven-thirty, Fred had surprisingly kept his promise and almost ushered her out so she wouldn't be too late. She stepped through the painting of the fruit bowl and was greeted by Jack, Hiccup and Rapunzel, as well as all the house-elves, standing in front of a large red and gold banner that read – **Merida #1 Beater.**

They all cheered when she entered and clapped their hands in congratulations as she was guided to a large stack of food that the house-elves had prepared.

'Good job Merida,' Hiccup told her happily.

'Yeah well done,' Rapunzel cheered as Pascal flashed alternatingly between red and gold.

'Thanks guys,' Merida told them as she and the others all began to take helpings of the food.

'James says you're the new one to watch,' Jack informed her as they all ate, some of the house-elves leaving to complete duties elsewhere in the castle while others, including Grindl and Elise, remained to share the food. 'He said with a swing like yours we're going to have to watch out for you in a match. Then Mulcaster tried to say something witty but I stopped paying attention.'

'Sorry I'm so late,' Merida apologised, feeling a little guilty now for making the others wait. 'It's just that some of my team wanted a celebration drink before I left.'

'You're making friends outside our group now?' Hiccup asked, pretending to look hurt in betrayal which made Merida laugh with relief.

'So, how was the Gryffindor party?' Rapunzel asked curiously.

'Pretty cool actually, people clapped for me and they seemed ta mean it,' Merida replied, her words causing mock shock from the three.

'Wow, maybe our quidditch positions are going to lift our social status above scum,' Jack joked as the others laughed.

Merida returned to the common room three hours later, after curfew had started. It would have been earlier if she had Fred's magic map but as it was she had to take her time sneaking through the corridors until she got to the Lady's portrait.

When she got into the common room she was exhausted, the day's events had pretty much drained all her energy. Even so when she went up to the dormitory and tip-toed past the sleeping figures to her own bed she couldn't help but reach down under it and pull out the mysterious book, she'd left it for too long and now she wanted to know what it said.

She opened it to reveal the title page again – _The path to becoming the True King_ – the words illuminated into spidery glyphs by her bedside light. She turned the page to reveal pages crammed with formulas and theories written so tightly together that the whole thing was almost black with ink with barely enough white of the page to distinguish between the words.

She didn't understand most of the equations; they looked similar to ones that Whittler sometimes left on the board after a lesson with sixth or seventh years but far more complicated. She turned another page to reveal multiple sketches, some again of horrific shadowy bears but many more of different flowers, herbs, tinctures and other potions equipment. Whatever this book was it was clearly designed to create a powerful potion and Merida was suddenly worried that this book was more important than it looked. What if Whittler came looking for it? She'd get a detention for sure, maybe even suspension.

But then again, the damage was already done and the book had been missing for a few weeks now; she could always return the book tomorrow with Whittler being none the wiser. She read on, or at least flicked through more pages. Every page became more detailed with more drawings or equations the further in she got, clearly whatever the writer had been working towards they had been getting closer. As she flicked through Merida realised that the pages each shared one similar feature, a sentence written at the bottom right edge of each one like a chant.

She looked closely and read –_ The strength of ten men, the power of ten wizards_. She continued to flick through the pages and stopped as she found something more interesting than the scrawled potions notes. It was more like a diary entry than anything else which read:

_With the strength of ten men, no warrior could defeat you._

_With the power of ten wizards, no spell could harm you._

_These are the two traits a king should strive towards, that should be proof of their right to rule, not some long forgotten blood-link to the land!_

_This potion will be proof of my right as the True King and when it is complete, no one will stop me._

Merida shuddered as she read it; she could almost feel the malice leaking from the ink on the page. She turned to the last pages that were mainly empty except for a final few equations and ingredients, refined and perfected from their predecessors in the beginning of the book. Underneath them a last message had been written, very hastily by the look of it as if the writer had been hurrying in their excitement.

_My potion is complete, years' worth of work and research finally succeeding._

_With this, I shall regain my family's ancient right and ascend to the true power that I deserve._

_I shall become the True King Mordu._

Merida gasped and threw the book away to the end of her bed as if it had bitten her hand. She sat, her arms wrapped around her knees, staring at the book as if it would move. In her head thoughts raged like a tempest. That was why they couldn't find a reference to Mordu in all those bestiaries from the library, because the Demon-bear Mordu had once been a human.

* * *

**Phew, another chapter written in less than 24 hours. It's all because I love you guys (Don't get used to it :P)**

**Thanks as ever for the great reviews and thanks for reading. :)**


	11. The Truth

**The Truth**

Hiccup shivered and huddled further into his furs as a chilling breeze blew across the grounds. It was an early spring morning and the grass had turned a pale shade of blue as the dew on their blades froze, crunching under his boots as he walked back towards the castle.

'Wish I'd kept Toothless with me,' he said to himself, remembering the feeling of Toothless' warm, dry scales as they flew through the frigid air.

He stopped as he saw another figure moving around at the side of the castle, closer to the Forbidden Forest's tree-line. He recognised the blue hoodie and shepherd's crook staff immediately, although even without these features he would have known it was Jack as only Jack could be walking around in this weather in bear feet. But what was Jack doing out so early?

Hiccup hid behind one of the courtyard walls and peeked around the side to get a good view of Jack without being spotted. He had no idea why he was hiding, he knew he could just ask Jack later today but his curiosity made him stay.

Jack was crouching at the base of his staff, looking at something Hiccup couldn't see from his angle. It had to be important as Jack spent a good five minutes, watching it intently before nodding to himself and standing up. He grabbed his staff and twirled it around a bit unconsciously as he prepared himself. When the staff reached the top of a twirl Jack quickly brought it back down and struck the earth with its base as if to stab down into the ground. Immediately an icy wind blew from the staff, the ground freezing around its tip in the usual fern patterns, while around Jack small glowing white circles began to appear and grow until they merged to form a ring around Jack who stood right in its centre.

Hiccup craned further forward so as to get a better view of what was about to happen but just then Jack gave a gasp and collapsed to one knee, the shimmering ring surrounding him fading along with the wind. Concerned, Hiccup stepped out from his hiding spot and ran over quickly to check if Jack was alright.

'Are you okay?' He asked nervously as he crouched down to look Jack in the face. The boy was panting from what looked like over-exertion but otherwise unharmed as he smiled reassuringly at Hiccup.

'Yeah…it's fine. It'll just take a little practice is all,'

'What will take practice?' Hiccup asked in confusion, stepping back as Jack got up from his kneeling position.

As he did his furred boot knocked into something that, when he looked down, turned out to be a book. It was grey with dog-eared edges and looked as if its spine had been enlarged multiple times to add space for additional pages, which in fact it had. It glittered enticingly like freshly fallen snow being hit by sunlight.

'Whoa, careful Hiccup!' Jack warned as Hiccup bent to pick up the book but too late as Hiccup's fingers closed around the edge.

They stood frozen for a second, both afraid something would happen, before Hiccup stood up slowly, holding the book at arm's length in fear of what it might do if he made any sudden moves. Jack took it from him gently and began to laugh at the serious look on Hiccup's face.

'Sorry about that. I put a winter-sealing charm on it a year ago and I've never been sure if it would hurt you guys or not,' Jack apologised to the bewildered Hiccup. 'I was just afraid you'd have to go to Madame Pomfrey and Rapunzel to cure frostbite.'

'Oh…right,' Hiccup responded, 'Wait…_what_?'

'Maybe we should go in where it's warm,' Jack suggested as he saw Hiccup shiver from another gust of wind, as ever he didn't feel the cold but he knew when it was and right now he knew Hiccup wouldn't be feeling too comfortable even in his furs.

'Don't worry, I'm not that cold,' Hiccup reassured him as they hurried back to the castle. 'I'm Berkian after all; we think anything above freezing is warm.'

Jack smirked at that until he noticed Hiccup was still holding his father's book, gently but firmly he took it from Hiccup's fingers and put it back in his bag for safe keeping. When they got in Hiccup tried to rub his hands warm, having forgotten his gloves as usual in the dormitories. Seeing this Jack tried to warm them himself, cupping Hiccup's hands in his own until Hiccup shivered more and pulled his hands away involuntarily.

'Oh sorry I forgot, I can only make you colder,' Jack apologised. 'There's a spot where you can light a fire over there,' he added helpfully, pointing at a small alcove hidden slightly in the wall.

It was definitely a small place, a sort of circular bump in the wall with a row of stone seats set around a currently empty brazier. They both sat down on the seats and Jack began to hunt for the material to start a fire.

'No need,' Hiccup told him before pointing his wand at the brazier and intoning, 'incendir.'

Immediately flames appeared in the grating and soon the small alcove was much warmer, Jack was sure he could see the walls steaming gently as the fire warmed them.

'So what's with the book?' Hiccup asked as he settled back on the seat.

'Oh right,' Jack said, pulling out the book absentmindedly. 'It's sort of my dad's book, well my family's really,' he continued as he began to flip through the pages.

'You know I told you my family specialise in ice magic, well this is the book all my ancestors wrote in when they were coming up with new spells, most of them are only known by our family. When a wizard or witch in the family comes of age they're given the book and get taught the spells by a member of the family who's already mastered them.'

'Wow, how come you've never shown it to us before?' Hiccup asked curiously as he looked at the pages of the book, some white and fresh and others brown and ancient.

'I don't know,' Jack sighed as he continued to turn the familiar pages of the book. 'It's the last connection I've got to my dad; he left it to me after he died. He was supposed to teach me the spells himself but he died when I was eight, so all he could do was leave me the book.'

'Hey, if you don't want to talk about it that's fine,' Hiccup said, worried that he'd crossed a line.

'No it's alright,' Jack reassured him, 'I've just…never really talked about it before. The thing is I didn't really pay much attention to it in the first year, I just learned the spells that looked fun. It was only after Black that I started to learn it properly; I go out in the mornings and go spell by spell now. After all, my sister's going to need me to teach her when she turns eleven.'

Hiccup began to think quickly when he saw the look on Jack's face, the same look of loss he had known after his mother died. Realising what would cheer up the conversation he took of his horned helmet and showed it to Jack whose expression changed from sorrow to confusion.

'This is all I've got left of my mum,' he told Jack with what he hoped was realistic solemnity.

'That's cool,' Jack said, 'Do Berkians usually inherit helm…?'

'It's half of her breastplate,' Hiccup interrupted quickly making Jack snort uncontrollably.

'Oh God, sorry I didn't mean…' Jack said hurriedly when he'd stopped, looking guilty for laughing at Hiccup's own heirloom until he realised Hiccup was laughing too.

'Don't worry, she'd make jokes about it too,' Hiccup told him as he put the helmet back on. 'What's worse is dad has the other half,' he continued, making them both laugh again.

'So what was that about me getting frostbite?' Hiccup asked when he remembered what had happened when he'd tried to pick up the book.

'Oh that,' Jack said, still laughing slightly, 'it's a charm I learned from the book that stops people I don't want grabbing it. Lucky I used it too because Mulcaster tried to steal it a month later, he had to go to the hospital wing for freeze burns.'

'Serves him right,' Hiccup laughed along.

'Looks like our time's up,' Jack stated as he looked out the window to see the sun now rising higher above the Forbidden Forest. They could hear the first people beginning to come down to the Great Hall for breakfast and knew that the day had properly begun.

'I've got to go…'

'I've got to…'

They both stopped to let the other finish, leaving a slightly awkward silence as they both fought to think up what to say next.

'I'll see you at breakfast,' Hiccup eventually managed as they began to wander out from the alcove and down to their common rooms.

'Yeah, and then we're off to Hogsmeade,' Jack replied, putting the book back into his bag and grabbing his staff.

'So I'll see you and the others in a minute then,' Hiccup said awkwardly as he turned into the Hufflepuff corridor.

Jack waved a goodbye and then turned to walk down into the dungeons. 'What the hell was that!' He exclaimed to himself when he was sure no one would hear him.

* * *

It was still cold when the four set off to Hogsmeade two hours later. Although the sun was shining without a cloud in the sky the icy winds were still blowing and kept the temperature down to just above freezing.

'Are you sure you need _all_ those clothes Rapunzel,' Hiccup asked as the town came into view.

Rapunzel's reply was too muffled to hear as much of her head was wrapped tightly in her Ravenclaw scarf. She was also wearing at least two winter robes because she was much bulkier than the others remembered. Pascal was currently wrapped in a bundle of Rapunzel's scarf on her shoulder, still shivering nonetheless.

'What was that? Did you hear that Merida?' Jack asked jokingly at the sounds coming from Rapunzel's scarf.

Merida was staring off into the distance, her eyes looking at Hogsmeade but not really seeing it. She'd been like that for a couple of days, hardly paying attention to her teachers or friends as if all of her mind was focused on something else.

'So where should we go first,' Jack asked, knowing there was no real point in waking Merida from her thoughts. She'd just go back to staring blankly into space after a few stunted sentences.

'How about Weasley's Wizard Wheezes,' Hiccup suggested as they arrived on the streets of Hogsmeade and the shop appeared before them.

'Good idea, I need to stock up on Filibuster Fireworks,' Jack said, rubbing his hands together in excitement as they entered the shop.

Inside the shop was mayhem, students from all years of Hogwarts were lining up to buy all sorts of items and more were jostling amongst the shelves, grabbing at whatever they could. Jack dived merrily into the fray, heading for the firework section and knocking people out the way with his staff, while Hiccup and Rapunzel browsed on the outskirts of the crowd and Merida stood disinterestedly by the door.

'Hey Merida,' a voice said behind her, breaking her from her thoughts.

'Oh, hi Fred,' she responded, looking around to see the beaming redhead.

'You looked a million miles away,' he told her reproachfully, 'I'm surprised you're not fighting through the crowds with your friends.'

'I've…had a lot to think about,' was all Merida could say in return.

Fred looked at her quizzically and then smiled before pulling her along around the outside of the crowd.

'Where are ye takin' me this time?' she yelled angrily over the din of the crowd. Without answering Fred took her through a door labelled **Staff Only** and closed it behind her, cutting off the sound of the crowd.

Merida looked around her, for what seemed like miles, boxes and crates of every joke item the shop sold were stacked. Employees of the shop walked through the rows, picking out items that needed restocking or ordering the crates into better positions.

'It's easier to take what you want from here,' Fred told her conversationally. 'You'll have to pay for it though, dad doesn't even give _me_ a discount and I'm his son.'

'Your dad owns this shop?' Merida asked in wonder, finally making the connection between Fred's last name and the shop, her thoughts on the book currently hidden in her bag forgotten.

'He and his brother founded it,' Fred told her as they began to descend to the glory below them.

They spent the next fifteen minutes browsing and rummaging through the stacks of different joke objects. Eventually Merida came away with only a broom maintenance kit while Fred was weighed down by an entire assortment of joke sweets, fireworks and games. They paid for them and said their goodbyes, Fred going off with his girlfriend Ashleigh Marsh and Merida with the others.

Soon she descended back into her thoughts on the book and what to do about it. She'd thought of almost nothing for the last few weeks and still had no idea what to do about it. The Easter holidays were coming up soon and that meant she would have to return home to the highlands, and she didn't want to return there until she had all the answers.

'Can we go ta the Three Broomsticks next,' she said suddenly, 'I need a butterbeer.'

The three looked at her in surprise; this was the most she had said to them all day. They shrugged their shoulders at one another and followed the red-haired girl into the pub. They ordered their butterbeers and took them into a secluded corner of the pub where they sat at a table. Without any warning Merida opened her bag and dumped Mordu's book onto the table making the three jump.

'I need to tell ye somethin',' she said, leaning forward so no one else would hear.

Her story took a surprisingly long time to tell and by the end of it the others were left with their mouths half-hanging open.

'The bear that tried to kill us?' Jack asked incredulously as Rapunzel reached over and began to pour through the book, Pascal leaning over on her shoulder to get a good look.

'Was a man,' Merida answered simply.

'This is incredible,' Rapunzel said as she read the cramped pages of the book. 'I've never read anything this complex before; he was trying all kinds of ingredients and methods to make this potion.'

'Ye can read that thing?' Merida asked, impressed as she couldn't make heads or tails of the equations.

'A little, it uses similar symbols to Arithmancy but in the context of potions instead. I can't read much of it though; some of this stuff is so complicated I think only the greatest potion masters could understand it fully.'

'What's this stuff about being the True King?' Hiccup asked in confusion, drinking the remains of his butterbeer.

'I don't know, it has somethin' ta do with my dad though,' Merida replied, 'Mordu talked about my parents as if he knew them and I'm sure they know more about him than they're tellin' me.'

'Why was this book in the potions room to begin with?' Rapunzel asked, still staring at the last page of the book as if it might tell her.

'Well it was pretty well hidden,' Merida remembered, 'No one else would've noticed it; I'm not even sure why I did.'

'Not that. _Why_ was it hidden in the school? Surely something like this should be in the care of the Ministry for Magic not a potions storeroom.'

'Good question,' Jack said, leaning back in his chair as he thought about it.

'Do you think Whittler knows anything about it?' Hiccup asked conspiratorially.

'Uh, all this book's done is ask more questions than it answered!' Merida yelled who was quickly shushed by the others as other students turned to see what was going on.

'Something's wrong,' Rapunzel spoke up suddenly. She was holding all the pages of the book and was moving them back and forth so she could look at the inside of the cover on both sides.

'What is it?' Merida asked, hope of another clue rising in her heart.

'The back inside cover's wrong,' Rapunzel said to the general groans of the others.

'Seriously, can we focus on the mystery and not the design,' Jack said in exasperation to general agreement from the others.

'No, I mean it. The back cover has been stuck together wrong,' Rapunzel told them, showing the inside of the back which did indeed look messier than the inside of the front. 'And feel it,' she continued at the look of their uncertainty, 'there's something inside the back I'm sure of it.'

The others took hold of it as well and ran their fingers over the cover, there did seem to be a slight impression of two very small bumps hidden in the lining. They all looked at each other, knowing this might be something important or nothing at all and they all hesitated, unsure whether it would be worth it or not.

Eventually Merida couldn't stand it anymore and used the tip of her wand to rip open the lining and reveal what was hidden within. What looked like a torn piece of paper fell out from the cover and drifted onto the table. Immediately Merida realised she had been mistaken, it wasn't paper but a photograph torn in two. The images were frozen now, their spell destroyed from the prolonged damage of the tear.

Merida gasped when she saw that on the larger half were her parents, still young like in the quidditch photo. They were older than that though, Fergus' stubble was thicker and his moustache had grown larger while Elinor seemed to stand with even greater maturity than when she had waited for her future husband after his quidditch match. They were in a happy embrace and waving at the cameraman.

She looked at the other half and saw man as large as Fergus but with black hair and with a far larger beard, not stubble any longer but becoming fully-grown. She realised she recognised him, he was the man that had stood with her mother in the quidditch picture but what was he doing here?

She turned the picture of her mother and father over and saw there was writing on the back.

_The engagement party of Fergus Dunbroch and Elinor McRae with the brother of the bride_

The names had been written to mirror exactly where the pictures were so the last name was cut off as it was behind the picture of the man. Quickly Merida turned over his half of the photo to reveal his name.

_Mordu McRae_

Merida's stomach clenched violently and she was sure she would have been sick if she hadn't got a hold over herself and forced herself to breathe deeply for a few seconds. Mordu the demon-bear...her uncle.

Without thinking she grabbed the book and sprinted out of the Three Broomsticks before the others had a chance to read the back of the photos. She sprinted faster than she had ever moved before, back up to the school. She was going to end this fucking mystery once and for all.

'Merida wait!' The others called back to her as they tried to catch up but it was no use, they'd had to pay for their butterbeers hurriedly before leaving and that meant Merida had a good head start on them. Jack flung himself into the air, shepherding the winds with his crook to send him after her and soon he was closing in, gaining enough ground to stop her and get her to calm down.

Without breaking her pace Merida turned in mid-stride and pointed her wand at him, shouting 'Petrificus totalus,' before he had a chance to react. Immediately his limbs snapped together and he tumbled to the earth with a small thud. Without another look back Merida turned into the castle and vanished from sight.

Seconds later, Hiccup and Rapunzel appeared panting over the hill. Rapunzel called out a counter curse and Jack sprang back up immediately, running with the others this time as he was unwilling to take on Merida in her current state alone.

* * *

In the dungeons Merida's running footsteps banged and echoed across the stone walls and soon enough she burst into the office of Professor Whittler, the door banging as it was thrown against the wall.

'Miss Dunbroch, what is the meaning off…!' Whittler began angrily as she stood up from her desk where she had been working on a new carving when Merida slammed Mordu's book in front of her.

'Where did ye get that?' She asked in far calmer tones, the presence of the book immediately wiping away her anger.

'From where ye hid it of course,' Merida snarled back, 'Now I want ye ta tell me why ye hid it.'

'Ye've got no right to steal…'

'No one had the right ta keep the truth from me either,' Merida retorted before she could finish, looking defiantly at the potions professor, 'I know Mordu's my uncle.'

That seemed to surprise Whittler as the old woman seemed to deflate slightly with a heavy sigh. At that moment a banging behind them alerted Merida that the others had finally caught up with her. They looked in cautiously and saw Merida standing tall against Whittler who suddenly was looking very old.

'Alright,' Whittler sighed, 'I'll tell you.'

'You three,' she snapped suddenly at the others, 'wait outside, this is private between me and the lass.'

'No, they stay,' Merida said stubbornly, 'they're the only people I trust right now.'

Whittler gave another sigh and nodded her head in approval, allowing the others to come in. They sat down at the edges of the class, near enough to give Merida support if she needed it but far enough not to interrupt. Whittler and Merida sat down last, across each other from the desk.

'Mordu _is_ yer uncle,' Whittler conceded, 'he was yer mother's younger brother.'

'He was the most gifted lad I ever taught. He could work potions like, well, magic. When he told me that he was planin' on inventin' potions after Hogwarts I encouraged him, I knew he was skilled enough for it. After he left I heard very little of him until three years later when he returned one night with this book in his arms. He told me quite calmly that he'd finished his masterpiece, "The greatest potion on earth" he called it. He told me he wanted me ta keep the book, as a memento of him, and I accepted. By the time I'd read through the book and realised what he was planin' I was too late; he'd turned himself into a monster. I warned your father and mother what he'd done so they'd be wary of him and thank God I had or Mordu might have got you and yer mother all those years ago. I kept the book though, out of fear of what would happen if someone tried ta copy the potion. I doubted any student would be interested enough in it and so kept it amongst the other potions books, hidden in plain sight.'

'Why didn't ye just destroy it?' Merida asked in confusion.

'Mordu had put a charm on it so it couldn't be destroyed until he was defeated in single combat and so far it hasn't happened.'

'But that doesn't explain why Mordu wants ta kill me,' Merida said. 'He's gone after me twice now, what's he got against me?'

Before answering Whittler hesitated as if thinking of how much she could say, noticing this Merida demanded, 'I want the whole truth; I'm tired of being kept in the dark.'

'Very well, in the time of the founders of Hogwarts over a thousand years ago the five clans of the highland wizards, the Dingwalls, Macintoshes, McGuffin, Dunbrochs and McRaes, were born. A lone king had once ruled over the highlands but on his death he shared the lands equally between his five sons who were the founders of each clan. For a hundred years the five clans fought to rule all the lands and finally it was yer ancestors the Dunbrochs that succeeded. Their leader became the first king of the highland clans and it has remained that way, even now although yer no longer called kings. Mordu wants ta kill ya so he can inherit the title from yer family, that's all.'

'What did he mean about a blood-link to the land?' Merida asked, unwilling to let even the smallest thing go without an answer.

'It's just an old legend,' Whittler answered, waving her hand nonchalantly to show it didn't matter. 'The Dunbroch's are supposed ta have a connection ta the land they rule over and Mordu's hunger for all kinds of power makes him hunt it, even if is just a legend.'

'I am truly sorry young Dunbroch,' she said softly, 'I wish I could have done more ta stop him.'

'That's fine Professor, I'm sure ye did yer best,' Merida replied as she stood up and left the room without a second glance. The other three left hurriedly after her, giving a quick thanks to the Professor.

Professor Whittler sat quietly at her desk for a while, looking down at the book that Merida had left on her desk.

'That was close,' the raven said from his perch. It said a lot about how draining it had been to talk to Merida for Whittler when she couldn't be bothered to swipe the bird away.

'I was on the edge there,' she agreed, 'but she mustn't know the truth until she's fifteen. None of them can know the truth until then.'

Merida shook the others off when they tried to comfort her, telling them she wanted to be alone before heading up to the common room. She sat in front of the fireplace, her thoughts flying about her, the secret was finally out and she felt no better for it.

She sat in the squashy sofa for what felt like an age, the room eerily quiet as there were only a few second and first years around. She heard the entrance way open and a second later Fred sat beside her, carrying a heavy bag filled with sweets and magical joke items.

He rifled through it for a moment and triumphantly pulled out the broom maintenance kit Merida had bought with him hours ago and placed it to the side so Merida could pick it up when she wanted.

'Your friends told me you were having some family issues,' he said kindly after they had sat quietly for a few minutes.

'That's an understatement,' Merida murmured, slightly annoyed the others had brought Fred into this.

'Let's go out and practice quidditch then,' he said as a reply, causing Merida to look at him as if he were mad.

'What? It's a great way to work out aggression, especially if you can aim the bludger at whoever's pissed you off and get away with it.'

Merida snorted in laughter but stopped quickly, the new revelations still too strong to allow her to keep happy for long. Even so she agreed with Fred and went to grab her quidditch stuff before heading out to the pitch with Fred. She wasn't going to forget what she'd discovered forever, and she'd have to deal with it eventually, but for now she could forget it all for the next few hours.

* * *

**It has been one hell of a week. I'm sorry this chapter's so late; I didn't have the chance to go on my computer from Thursday to Monday.**

**On the plus side I think someone owes Sword slasher a chocolate frog.**

**Hopefully I can return to the usual routine now so I hope you guys enjoyed the chapter and thanks for reading :)**


	12. The Quidditch Final

**The Quidditch Final**

Merida spent the Easter holiday at Hogwarts; she couldn't face her parents just yet, the secret they'd kept from her was still too fresh. She'd been alone as the others had already made plans back at their homes, they'd even offered her to stay over if she wanted but she politely refused.

It had been surprisingly fun even so. Professor Bunnymund especially, got into the holiday spirit; locking himself within the most tropical greenhouse to paint a vast assortment of chocolate eggs, varying in size from a chicken's egg to a dragon's, with the help of certain magical plants. She discovered there was a certain war between Bunnymund and North over whose favourite holiday was better, Christmas in North's case and Easter in Bunnymund's. It explained why the Christmas and Easter decorations would grow more extravagant and imaginative every year.

On the day itself she had wandered into the Great Hall and was invited by Toothiana to sit at the single table set up for the teachers and students that hadn't returned home, laden with all forms of pancakes and toppings with North and Bunnymund arguing animatedly over which holiday was better.

'Well at least you've got all year to prepare. I'm working with perishables here!' Bunnymund yelled angrily at a smiling North.

'If you say so Bunny,' North had replied sarcastically, starting another bout of arguments.

After that Merida and the rest of the students, as well as the teachers, had spent the day egg-hunting for all the eggs Bunnymund and the house-elves had hidden around the castle. Everyone had come away with large bundles of the chocolate goodies stuffed in their robes. Even Toothiana, who disliked chocolate, had found several boxes of toothflossing stringmints that Bunnymund had studiously hidden in her office, earning him a large hug from the Transfiguration teacher.

Her parents sent her a few letters during the holiday, one attached to a box of chocolate eggs her mother had hand made. She didn't answer any; except for a single thank you for the eggs because she really loved her mum's homemade chocolate, but aside from that she didn't know what to say to them anymore.

* * *

After the return to school however, the fun of the Easter holiday quickly vanished as Merida's workload seemed to double. Not only where the teachers piling on more homework in preparation for the upcoming exams but she had to order them around her daily quidditch practices. It was no easier for Jack who had just as heavy a workload as the Gryffindor-Slytherin match began to loom ahead.

The competitive spirit between Merida and Jack was at an all-time high. Both of them wanted to prove their worth to their teams and were afraid of the retribution if they failed. Jack knew Mulcaster would jump at any weakness he showed on the pitch and Merida feared for the friendship she had made with Fred, would he still treat her the same if she failed to pull her weight?

In the week before the match the teams found they were getting the worst of the charged atmosphere between the two houses. None of them could walk around without the enemy house trying to trip them up or sneakily jinx them. As such both their captains ordered that all players be flanked by a crowd whenever they left the common rooms, even Merida and Jack were guarded by a small group that included the only Hufflepuff and Ravenclaw to get involved.

James had repeatedly warned Jack to be wary of hanging out with Merida in case she tried to sabotage him to help her house but Jack had constantly reminded him that Merida wouldn't try anything underhanded like that.

'No, she'd prefer to break my neck on the pitch than break my leg off it,' he'd told James grimly.

Merida was also given a warning to be wary of Jack from Alice, although it went a bit more like, 'If he tries anything funny, jinx him between the eyes.'

* * *

All the usual activities were abandoned in the common rooms the night before the match. The four had decided to spend the night in their common rooms as they agreed it was too dangerous to wait out curfew with Merida and Jack when there would probably a few people prowling around, hoping to find an easy target that would give them better odds.

Fred and Merida dealt with the pressure by playing a loud and energetic game of exploding snap. They were joined by two of the seekers, Fred's girlfriend Ashleigh Marsh and his best friend Flynn Ryder. Alice Chang had spent the last half hour staring intently at a model of a quidditch pitch, making any mental alterations to the plans that she had already drilled into the team's heads.

Jack and Mulcaster sat on opposite sides of the room in the Slytherin dungeons, too nervous to bother with each other. Mulcaster dealt with it by boasting loudly to his usual gang of admirers about how he'd started quidditch training at the age of four, which he was sure was much earlier than _some people_. Jack spent the time sitting with James Turner who, like Alice Chang several floors above him, was trying to calculate what seemed like every possible move that could be made on the miniature pitch.

'We'll need to keep an eye on your friend of course,' Turner was saying quickly, 'she's ferocious with a Bludger.'

Hiccup and Rapunzel sat in their own common rooms, trying to read or draw but failing miserably. They had their own reasons to be nervous for this match.

Eventually, after what seemed like an age, Alice and James stood up in their respective common rooms and ordered, 'Team! Bed,'

* * *

The Slytherin and Gryffindor teams, including Jack and Merida, arrived in the Great Hall at the same time, keeping a wary distance from one another as they simultaneously walked through the large double doors of the Hall. Jack and Merida caught each-other's eyes as they passed and gave a grin and a friendly nod before they were dragged to their tables which were both roaring and clapping tumultuously.

Hiccup and Rapunzel, who had also come into the Hall for the day, ran over first to Merida then Jack to give their support.

'Be sure to look out for us today,' Rapunzel told them, her cheeks painted red and gold on one side and green and silver on the other.

'Yeah, we've got a surprise for you,' Hiccup had agreed, his own cheeks painted in a mirror image to Rapunzel's.

Both teams ate quickly at the urgings of their captains and were ushered out when they had finished so they could get a good judgment of the weather conditions.

'Not bad, all in all,' Alice had said as they walked to the pitch and the Gryffindor changing rooms. 'Sun's not shining too strongly, gives perfect visibility. No wind that I can feel although I imagine there'll be stronger currents higher up; we may need to watch out for them. Not bad conditions for a last match I say.'

'This is your last match?' Merida asked. She had forgotten that as a seventh year Alice wouldn't be returning to Hogwarts.

'Well, I've got an acceptance from the Howling Harpies. If all goes well I'll be playing for them next year.'

'Which is why you're going to leave Hogwarts with a bang, we're not letting you go without a victory,' Fred promised to general cheers from the rest of the team.

* * *

Neither team spoke as they changed; even Fred, who was usually the most exuberant team member, or Mulcaster, who rarely shut up, stayed quiet. After what seemed like only a few seconds they could hear the cheers of the crowd outside and knew it was time.

When the teams stepped out onto the field the noise of the cheers, muffled by the walls of their changing rooms, hit them like a wave. On one side of the pitch half the crowd seemed to be wearing or waving red. Banners covered in roaring golden lions fluttered across the stands and above them Professor Toothiana, who'd magically changed the colour of her feathers from green to a shining red for the occasion, danced in mid-air and performed a few looping tricks as the Gryffindor team arrived.

On the other side the Slytherin supporters cheered, covered in green and waving their own banners that read 'Go SLYTHERIN!' and 'SNAKES FOR THE CUP!'. At the front stood Professor Whittler who, on seeing the arrival of her own team, took out two beakers from her robes, shook them together and threw them high into the air. At the peak of their rise the fizzing concoctions exploded, turning their glass containers into sand and smoke that unravelled and twisted into a giant silver snake that hissed at the red half of the pitch before biting into its own tail and eating away at itself until it vanished.

'And here come the Gryffindors,' came a familiar voice from the commentator's box, 'Chang, Dunbroch, Weasley, Marsh, Ryder, Spinner and Flint. Easily considered to be the best line-up Gryffindor's had for some time, especially their new beater, just ask the players she's sent to the hospital wing.'

'Rapunzel we're not supposed to be biased remember,' a second recognisable voice cut in over her.

'Shut up Hiccup, I know what I'm doing.

Merida and Jack couldn't help themselves but laugh; it was definitely as surprising as they'd been warned. Rapunzel and Hiccup as commentators! Everyone knew the last commentator, Nicola Springer, had quite but how on earth did those two get the job? They looked up and saw the two standing above them, Rapunzel currently talking into the microphone with Pascal on her shoulder, changing constantly between red and green. Hiccup was standing slightly to the side but was still close enough to the microphone for his own voice to be heard.

'And here are the Slytherins, led by Captain Turner,' Rapunzel continued as the teams lined up in front of Madam Hooch, ready for the whistle. 'Looks like a pretty fearsome group too, this looks to be a pretty tough match.'

'Captains! Shake hands!' Hooch ordered as Alice and James stepped towards one another.

The two captains shook one another's hands firmly, giving each other the nod of one professional to another before parting and returning to their teams.

'Mount your brooms! One…Two…Three,' at the sound of her whistle they all kicked off and the two teams were soaring into place as the quidditch balls were released after them.

'And it's Gryffindor in possession, Naomi Spinner of Gryffindor has the Quaffle and is heading straight for the Slytherin goal posts. No, intercepted by Warrington, Warrington now has the Quaffle and…ouch, good Bludger from Merida, I mean Dunbroch. Quaffle back in Gryffindor now with Marsh and she's going for the post, IT'S BLOCKED! Zero all, Slytherin with the Quaffle.'

Hiccup's voice was now booming over the pitch, his time riding the super-fast Toothless, for what had nearly been four years now, allowed him to keep greater track of the zooming shapes that were the players.

While this was going on Jack was hovering above the other players to get a better view of the pitch, always searching for the Snitch. He also kept an eye on the Gryffindor seeker Alice Chang who was circling away to the side, if she made a move for the snitch he'd know about it.

'Marsh passes to Ryder and Ryder's heading for the goal, is he going for the score? Yes, he is! And…WHAT THE HELL WAS THAT!'

From above Jack could see it all. Flynn Ryder was racing towards the goal while the Slytherin keeper and captain, James Turner, was preparing to block when out of nowhere Mulcaster had appeared on Ryder's right, seemingly to intercept the Quaffle. Instead of trying to grab the ball however, Mulcaster grabbed the chaser's broom instead and swung out with his free hand, punching Flynn Ryder in the nose.

'YOU FILTHY CHEAT,' Rapunzel's voice rang out, clearly quidditch brought out an unusual side of her, 'YOU ROTTEN SCUM, WAIT UNTIL I GET MY HANDS ON YOU!'

Hiccup was joining in with Rapunzel's yells; shaking his fist at Mulcaster and shouting what looked like swear words although he wasn't close enough for the microphone to pick it up.

'Penalty!' Hooch roared, flying between Mulcaster and the furious Flynn as Mulcaster tried to explain he was reaching for the Quaffle and missed, 'Never in my years have I seen such a blatant attempt to sabotage another player.'

'What the hell Mulcaster!' Jack yelled down to the scowling chaser as Flynn Ryder, his nose still bleeding, took position to take the penalty.

'Ryder takes position and...Yes it slips through Turner's fingers, TEN-ZERO TO GRYFFINDOR!' Hiccup's voice rang out, drowned out by the cheers from the Gryffindors and boos from the Slytherins.

The game continued without any further offensive actions from either team, although both Merida and Fred simultaneously sent both Bludgers at Mulcaster when he had the Quaffle, forcing the chaser to drop the Quaffle and roll to get out the way or let several of his bones get broken. The scores of the game continued to fluctuate as the Slytherin's, angered by the Gryffindor's early lead, had hit back hard and soon the score was 80-50 to Gryffindor.

This wasn't good, Jack knew. Currently the Slytherins were winning in their bid for the Quidditch Cup by one-hundred and seventy points, so if the Gryffindors caught the Snitch while they had thirty points or more higher than Slytherin in the match they'd win the cup.

Suddenly he saw it, a flash of golden light by the base of one of the Gryffindor goalposts. He dived after it realising immediately that Alice Chang had seen it too, and she was closer to the posts than he had been and was already gaining on the small golden orb. Jack lowered himself further on his broom and willed it to go faster, feeling the wind rush around him as he accelerated.

'I think the seekers have seen the snitch!' Rapunzel's voice yelled excitedly, interrupting Hiccup's commentary of the chasers.

'Chang's ahead of Jack but he's gaining, come on Jack!' Hiccup called out as he realised what was going on.

'Oh, and _I'm _biased?' Rapunzel's voice spoke up, causing some people in the stands to cheer and laugh.

Jack hardly noticed their voices; his whole world now consisted of only him and the Snitch. He and Alice where neck and neck, both reaching out to the Snitch mere inches away. His hand was closer, his fingers brushed against the smooth surface of the Snitch and he lunged to grab it, pushing Alice's hand away.

WHAM! A Bludger grazed his shoulder, sending him into a spin away from the snitch. 'No!' he yelled out in desperation but it was too late, Alice's hand had closed around the Snitch to cheers from the red side of the pitch.

He righted himself and looked around to see who had hit the Bludger at him. Of course he knew who it was before he saw her, Merida sat on her broom above him, panting from the speed she'd used to catch the Bludger in time to hit it towards Jack. Jack groaned and hit his head twice in exasperation against the head of his broom before looking back at Merida and giving her a defeated smile. So she'd won, fair and square.

The two teams flew down together, the Gryffindor's hugging and cheering and the Slytherins looking thunderstruck, Jack included as he tried to rub some feeling into his shoulder.

'Tough luck Jack,' Henry Warrington, a seeker, told him sympathetically.

'I told you we shouldn't have let him on the team,' Mulcaster sneered, not at all sympathetically.

'What, you think he let himself get hit by that Bludger?' Thomas Carrington, one of the beaters, asked incredulously.

'He's friends with that Gryffindor!' Mulcaster protested, sticking to his old argument.

'Enough Mulcaster,' James sighed, rubbing his eyes.

'James, I'm really sorry. That Bludger came out of nowhere,' Jack began hurriedly, afraid of the worst.

'Don't worry about it Jack, we can't win them all. We're not going to drop you or anything.'

'You can't be serious captain!' Mulcaster began before the rest of the team cut him off.

'Shut up Mulcaster,'

'Yeah, if you hadn't given them that bloody penalty they wouldn't have had enough points to win the cup anyway,'

'I said enough,' James ordered, standing taller over his them, 'we're a team remember, we don't put blame on each other. Now let's go and give our congratulations to the Gryffindors and head back to the common room, they'll have prepared food for a party I'm sure.'

They trudged over to the smiling Gryffindor team and James offered his congratulations to Alice who thanked him in return.

'You were good,' she continued turning to a surprised Jack. 'That was one hell of a last match; my heart was beating so loudly I was sure the whole pitch could hear it.'

'Uh, thanks,' Jack said in reply as Alice vigorously shook his hand.

'Well done guys,' Rapunzel called over to them as she and Hiccup rushed towards the teams and pulled both Jack and Merida into a hug at the same time.

'What did you think of our commentating?' Hiccup asked as he reached them.

'Brilliant,' Jack told him heartily as Rapunzel let him go, 'How the hell did you both get the job?'

'Professor North saw us during the last match wearing mixed house colours. He told us there was an opening for commentator and said together he hoped we'd be the least biased for a single house,' Rapunzel told them quickly.

'Come on Jack, you can talk with your friends later,' James said cheerily as he put an arm around Jack's shoulder, 'right now I have to show you and Mulcaster how to drink away your sorrows with butterbeer.'

'And that reminds me,' Alice said as she put a hand on Merida's shoulder, 'I expect Merida to come with us and enjoy the full celebrations for once, no sneaking off half way through, if you all don't mind of course.'

'Nah, not a problem,' Hiccup told them, 'we sort of expected that anyway.'

'See you two later then!' Rapunzel called after them as the two were herded away by their teams before linking arms with Hiccup and hurrying after the crowd that was heading back to the school.

* * *

The Gryffindor celebration party lasted for hours but felt like weeks. Students had brought indoor fireworks to set off at random intervals to gasps and shouts from the crowd while the tables were filled with all manner of sweets and cakes. Even the prefects, who should have been keeping some kind of order, were participating in the chaos.

Merida weaved her way through the crowd of people who all turned to congratulate her for the amazing Bludger shot. Alice had even given her the Quidditch Cup at one point and made her hold it up to cheers from the crowd. Fred had congratulated her too but was currently in a corner with Ashleigh and Merida though it best to leave him be.

'Hey Merida!' Flynn Ryder called to her from the entrance portal that he had just climbed through with a fellow fourth year, 'there's someone out there looking for you.'

'Who?' Merida asked as she came over to only be answered with a shrug. Intrigued she stepped through the entrance way herself and out onto the landing in front of the Fat Lady to be greeted by her parents.

'Well done lass!' Fergus cried as he pulled her into a proud hug, 'that was a beautiful Bludger shot.'

'We're very proud of you,' Elinor agreed, a smile on her face that nonetheless said she thought proper witches didn't play as beaters.

'What are ye doin' here?' Merida asked in a stunned voice.

'Well we weren't goin' ta miss ye first final now where we,' Fergus said as he let her down.

'We were also worried,' her mother added with a look of concern, 'we understand that you needed some time away, Professor Whittler told us what had happened, but ye weren't answerin' our letters and we were gettin' concerned.'

'Well I have a lot of things ta think through,' Merida replied defensively.

'We understand…'

'How could ye never tell me?' Merida asked suddenly, cutting off her mother.

'We didn't think ye were old enough,' Fergus tried to explain; 'We didn't want to burden a child with it.'

'Mordu's tried to kill me _twice_ now!' Merida reminded him angrily; she felt it was an important point. 'Didn't ye think I was old enough to know last summer?'

'I know, I know,' her mother returned suddenly before stopping and starting again more slowly. 'He was my little brother; he was there the day you were born for pity's sake. It was so hard for me to see what he had become and I couldn't bear to let you go through that too. I was…ashamed of what had happened, and scared when he started goin' after you. I didn't know what ta do.'

There was a silence after that as they all took in what had been said and then Merida asked, 'So, what now?'

'We've got guards patrollin' the borders of our territories lookin' for the monster and you know more now to stay careful. It's safe for ye ta come home,' Fergus told her truthfully.

'Of course I'm comin' home,' Merida told them to the relief of both parents.

'Good, good, that's good,' Fergus said happily, 'well, we'll leave you ta yer party, we left the triplets with Maudie and ye know how they can be with her, the little scamps.'

Her mother gave her a kiss on the cheek before she said goodbye and they both descended the steps of the castle. Merida watched them go with a sad smile before returning to the common rooms and re-joining the party. She hope one day, she'd be able to trust them again.

* * *

After the Quidditch final the four found themselves finally accepted by the majority of their houses. Merida was a quidditch star among the Gryffindors and Jack was forgiven his loss by most of Slytherins who had seen Jack's near miss and accepted he would have won if not for that Bludger. All except Mulcaster and his gang of course who still saw him and the other three as scum but, for once, they were alone in that thought.

Hiccup and Rapunzel found themselves more accepted as well thanks to their commentating, parts of which had made the crowd laugh so hard they'd miss parts of the match. Together all four were accepted at last and returned to eat at the Great Hall with their houses, except for two days every week when they would descend to the kitchens and re-join Grindl and the other elves for old time's sake.

All together, the four had never been happier at school.

* * *

Mordu prowled through the dark woods back to the ruined castle that served as his home. Merida would soon be returning from Hogwarts for summer but this time she would be better guarded and prepared, he wouldn't be able to get near her again. Snarling he swiped at the base of a tree, his sharp claws cutting away half the bark causing the tree to fall.

He had been so close, she was in his jaws and he could have ended it all there but those other brats had interfered and she'd slipped through his claws again. No matter where she was his niece was protected, whether it was her father, friends or Hogwarts itself, he couldn't get to her. He arrived at the top of the hill where the rubble of his castle stood, when he had the power this castle would be rebuilt in his image from the stones of the Dunbroch stronghold. He saw ahead that someone was sitting on one of the large chunks of stone and immediately readied himself, his claws stretching to deliver a quick killing blow to the intruder.

'Now is that anyway to treat a guest,' the figure said to him as they stood up.

'**Do I know you?' **Mordu asked, recognising the voice.

The man smiled as he walked down towards the bear, showing no hint of fear. He was dressed in the darkest robes the demon-bear had ever seen, they seemed to blend perfectly with the shadows cast by the castle walls.

'My name is Pitch Black,' the man said, 'I advised you on parts of your potion, I'm glad it turned out so well.'

'**Ah yes, Black. I thought you had been sent to Azkaban,' **Mordu enquired, still ready to strike if the dark wizard seemed a threat.

'Someone's not been keeping up with the news,' a voice to his side said.

Mordu turned his head quickly, snarling at the potential attacker. A woman was sitting at his side with her legs crossed, perfectly at ease. She had striking black hair that was edged with a little silver and a face that could have been considered kind once but had changed to a far more sinister appearance.

'**I don't know you,'** Mordu said to the woman, **'so I suggest you pay me greater respect if you want to live.'**

'Oh, a threat from the king of a dilapidated castle, I'm so scared,' the woman mocked back, drawing her wand as Mordu snarled and turned further towards her.

'Enough Gothel,' came the voice of Black, sounding both like a command and a suggestion at the same time.

'Fine, fine, we _are all_ in this together I suppose.'

'**Why are you here,'** Mordu growled angrily, baring his teeth at Black.

'Gothel and I have a proposition for you,' Black offered, looking directly into the bear's black eyes.

'**I'm not interested,'** Mordu returned, readying himself to crush Black's head if he or his woman dared to attack.

'It will get you the Dunbroch girl,' Black told him softly.

Mordu stiffened slightly, his hackles rising and the spears and arrows in his side moving as if in some terrifying dance.

'**I'm listening.'**

'After the fall of that snake Voldermort, the dark wizards of the world have been kept on the run. When I left Hogwarts I thought I had learned from his story but it was only after my own incarceration that I truly understood the problem, one wizard alone, no matter how powerful, can control the wizarding world. So what I propose is a council of sorts, the three most powerful dark wizards alive; you, Gothel and myself united as one to rule the world,' Black recited, his eyes gleaming with a dangerous light.

'**What does that have to do with the Dunbroch girl?'** Mordu asked impatiently.

'Well, to stand together we must first unite so we may trust one another and there _is _something that we all share. Tell me, do you know of Miss Dunbroch's group of friends?'

'**Yes, the white haired one, the girl with the blonde hair and the boy with the metal foot. What of them?'**

'You want to kill the Dunbroch girl; well _I_ want the life of the white-haired boy, Jack Frost. Gothel here wishes to retrieve the blonde one, alive.'

'My little flower Rapunzel,' Gothel crooned in a voice that dripped with sinister purpose.

'Together they present a… surprisingly formidable force, but I have a plan. It will take some time but it will be worth it and what's more it will give us time to gather more forces, the dark wizards around the world will gladly bow to our power. So what do you say?' Black asked temptingly, 'The chance to have the Dunbroch girl in your jaws _and_ the power to rule over not just these highlands but a third of the world.'

Mordu stood quietly for some time, his bear's face giving away no emotion that the humans could see. Finally he reared back on his hind legs to tower over the two, leaning down so his muzzle would be nearer to Black's face as the dark wizard looked up to him, smiling.

'**Deal,'**

* * *

**Update: Okay to answer a few questions. I know the last few chapters were very Merida centred but that's mainly because I was doing the Mordu mystery thing and she's heavily involved with that, I promise the others are going to get more time now we're moving on.**

**Secondly, for those asking for Hijack have no fear. I was waiting until the four were a little older before I started bringing in relationship subplots and the next chapter begins in their fifth year. Believe me when I say the Hijack stuff is going to get a lot more obvious in the next few chapters. **

**Hope that's helped and thanks for reading :)**


	13. The Prophecy

**The Prophecy**

'Seriously Rapunzel, ye can leave some books at home,' Merida complained as she and Rapunzel tried to heft the blonde's heavy trunk onto the train, her own trunk was already waiting in a compartment.

'I know but…I just can't decide…which ones,' Rapunzel panted between tugs at her trunk. After another few minutes the trunk finally gave way and slide up onto the carriage to exhausted sighs and cheers from the two women who collapsed onto the floor.

'Hey guys,' Jack greeted as he stepped over them and lifted his own trunk into the overhead luggage in their compartment.

'Of course you arrive after all the heavy liftin's done,' Merida said sarcastically as she got up while Rapunzel began to pull her case after them.

It was now the start of their fifth year and the three had all changed from the young eleven year olds they had been when they first met. Rapunzel had grown much taller than she had been although the most striking growth was of course her hair, which now hung to her feet even in its braid. Her face had matured as well, making her even more beautiful which was evident from the way the guys that passed their carriage wouldn't stop staring as they went by.

Jack had grown taller too and was now easily the tallest of the four, standing a couple of inches above Rapunzel. His own features, like Rapunzel, had grown more handsome, forcing him to spend much of his fourth year avoiding his fan girls. His body had become more athletic too over the years, from a combination of his training with Merida and Professor Maximus as well as his quidditch practice which gave him a thinly muscular look.

Merida was the shortest of the four, although she had still clearly grown which was a fact she had to remind Jack of several times. Her long red hair still hung in curls and tangles around her head as it always had and always will and like Jack her body had grown more athletic from constant practice and training.

'I've got to get back out there and help my sister up,' Jack told them as Rapunzel dragged her trunk the last few inches into the compartment and under her seat.

'Ooh, ye sister's comin' this year?' Merida asked excitedly. They'd heard stories from Jack about his younger sister but had barely met the girl personally except for a few brief glimpses of her waving her brother away as they headed to Hogwarts.

'Wait for me, I don't want to miss this,' Rapunzel called as she hurried after them.

At the trains door they met a shy looking girl with brown hair looking down nervously at the trunk in front of her as her mother stood next to her, giving comforting words.

'Aw, she's all nervous,' Rapunzel whispered happily to Merida.

'Where's the white hair?' Merida whispered back, 'I wanted to see a mini-Jack with long hair!'

'What's the matter sis?' Jack asked as he kneeled to look the girl in the eye.

'What if I don't fit in at Hogwarts?' The small girl, who was called Mia Frost, asked, 'Or if I get lost, or don't do well at lessons?'

'You don't have to worry about that,' Jack said soothingly, 'Of course you'll fit in and don't worry about getting lost, everybody does in their first year. Don't worry about doing well in lessons either, Merida does terribly and she's alright.'

'Hey!'

Mia giggled at this and the worry seemed to vanish from her face for a moment. She allowed Jack to heave her luggage onto the train and went to join her friends in a compartment further down the carriage.

'I'll wave you off honey,' Jack's mother called after her before shaking her head and sighing. 'It takes my half an hour to calm her down but it only takes you five minutes and an insult. You're going to be a great parent one day Jack,' she finished giving her son kiss on the cheek goodbye while Merida and Rapunzel looked sceptically at one another.

'Where's Hiccup,' Merida asked when Jack had returned, looking around the crowd in hopes of seeing the small Berkian.

'Over here!' Hiccup's voice called to their left. They three turned and each of their jaws dropped in surprise.

'Whoa,' Merida said quietly while Rapunzel just whistled.

'Nngh,' was all Jack could say as the Berkian arrived, pulling his trunk behind him.

Hiccup had also changed, what was becoming subtly evident through their third and fourth year had suddenly become obvious. Hiccup now stood as tall as Rapunzel, his metal foot had had to be tweaked to the right size to match his sudden growth spurt. His face had lost the last of its baby fat and had become older and more handsome. Years of riding a nightfury had finally caught up with him and his broad chest and arms seemed far more muscular.

'I can literally feel yer fan-girls slipping away from you,' Merida whispered to Jack who didn't respond as he was still staring at Hiccup.

'Hiccup, you look amazing,' Rapunzel told him, making Hiccup blush.

'Oh, thanks Rapunzel,' he said, awkwardly rubbing the back of his neck.

A second later they heard the whistle that signalled the train's departure and hurried on before it left without them. Jack had to be pulled on by a grinning Merida because he was still standing as if dumbstruck. They waved goodbye to their families as the train left the station and then settled back into their carriage, spending the journey talking about their holiday, trading chocolate frog cards, discussing quidditch matches they'd seen that summer and playing a game of Bertie Bot's fishing which Hiccup lost, again.

* * *

As ever at the Welcome Feast the sorting was performed before the feast itself began. The four sat at the individual tables and watched the group of small first years look about them in awe and fear as they were led into the Great Hall by Professor Bunnymund. They could all see Jack's sister in the middle with her own group of friends, gathered together in a sort of cowering huddle. One by one the new students were called up to have the old sorting hat placed upon their head and – after Finnegan, Jeremy – Frost, Mia was called out.

They all watched as little Mia walked up to the stool and had the sorting hat placed on her head by Professor Toothless. There was a moment's silence as the Hall waited for the hat's decision and eventually it called out RAVENCLAW. Jack clapped along with the rest as he watched his sister run towards the Ravenclaw table with the hat still on her head before hurriedly turning back and handing it to Toothiana. To be honest, after spending four years with his best friends all in different houses, he didn't really care which house his sister was sorted into.

Rapunzel made room for Mia to sit beside her and soon all the new students had been sorted and food magically appeared onto the tables, starting the feast. When everyone had eaten their fill, and were sitting back luxuriously to digest the meal before heading towards their dormitories, Professor North stood up to address them.

'Welcome back,' his voice boomed over the assembled students, 'I have short announcement before you may leave to your common rooms. I am pleased to say that zis year Hogwarts will be hosting zhe Tri Team Tournament between our fellow schools, Beauxbatons and Durmstrang.'

A loud and excited chatter began at his words with additional shouts like, 'You're joking!' and 'No way!' Professor North waited with a smile until it subsided before continuing.

'For those of you who know of zhe Tournament, entertain yourselves for a few moments as I explain. Zhe Tri Team Tournament is a new invention that began after zhe last failure of zhe Tri Wizard Tournament. While, like zhe original tournament, it is designed to be very dangerous, zhe changes made to it have insured greater safety for all participants. Instead of each school having only a single champion, zis Tournament requires a team of up to six members to represent zheir school. And so, as there is safety in numbers, zhe age restriction has been reduced to fifteen zis year, meaning any in fifth year or above may apply to participate. Zhe delegation from Beauxbatons and Durmstrang will be arriving in October and I'm sure you will extend every courtesy to our guests. And with that I bid you goodnight.'

There was a loud chatter as everyone left the Great Hall. Everybody was talking and speculating over who would apply, what the three challenges would be for the teams or when the other schools would be arriving. The four had joined in with the crowd and were making speculations of their own when they were stopped suddenly by their heads of houses.

'Is something wrong Professor?' Hiccup asked Bunnymund, confused as the rest of the students filed out of the Hall and left the four and their heads alone.

'Yes Haddock there is something wrong, but not with you,' the Herbology Professor replied with a look of – what? – pity in his eyes. 'You and your friends are to be taken to the Headmaster's office; we'll explain when we get there.'

The four looked at each other in concern as they were herded to the Headmaster's office. At the gargoyle that guarded the entrance Toothiana gave the password, 'Candy canes,' and the four entered into the office for the second time in their lives.

The circular room was very much like it had been the last time, with the long rows of previous Headmasters lining the walls, all asleep as before. The four could only spot two small alterations to the room that they hadn't seen before, first, two scimitars now hung behind North's empty seat and second, a stone basin filled with water had been moved into the centre of the room.

'Ah you are here,' North cried as he entered from a side room. 'Please have a seat,' he continued, waving his wand to make four wooden seats appear before them.

'What's going on Professor?' Rapunzel asked in confusion as they sat down.

North hesitated before answering, his exuberance fading as he looked between the four heads of house who had lined themselves around him, as if asking for support. Eventually he took a breath and said, 'We…have information for you. Information you must know, now.'

'It is difficult to know where to begin,' he said as he struggled for words before continuing. 'We are all part of a society that was built many years ago, eight in fact, called zhe Guardians. We came together to prevent a dark wizard from starting zhe Third Wizarding War, well you know him of course, Pitch Black.'

'Wait, you fought Pitch Black?' Jack asked in surprise.

'Yes, your father was also a member,' North told him.

'My dad?' Jack asked in shock.

'Yes, it was because of him Black was defeated the first time round after all. He and the rest of us were all gathered by Manny Moon who saw potential in us all to fight the dark.'

'Astronomy Professor Moon?' Hiccup asked incredulously. The Astronomy Professor was always a more reclusive teacher, staying in the Astronomy Tower for much of the time. Even during his lessons students rarely got a glimpse of the teacher and only knew him by his voice which seemed to float down from the moon and the stars themselves as the students looked into the heavens.

'He has a great skill in seeing people's character and their potential to do great good,' North answered as explanation.

'Anyway,' Bunnymund added, steering the conversation back to the point, 'when Black was defeated we returned to our normal lives, believing our role was over, but soon we discovered we were wrong.'

'A fellow teacher gave North's predecessor new information that meant the Guardians would stay vigilant,' Toothiana continued off from Bunnymund. 'That teacher was Professor Trelawney and what she gave us, was a prophecy, a prophecy about you.'

Merida couldn't help but snort at the idea. 'Professor Trelawney?' She asked in amusement, 'That hack couldn't predict what the weather will be like five seconds from now.'

'Not quite,' North corrected, 'every now and zhen Trelawney makes an accurate prediction. With yours her total is up to three.'

'The important thing is that you must hear it yourselves at the age of fifteen,' Toothiana told them, 'which leads us rather neatly to the pensieve.'

Rapunzel gasped in awe as she realised what she was seeing. Toothiana smiled at the girl's excitement as she led the four to the stone basin so that they could all look into its still waters.

'Memory magic's a certain specialty of mine,' she informed them as she took a golden vial from her robe and took out what looked like a tooth formed from concentrated silvery mists. She held it for a moment and then let it fall into the pensieve's waters. 'You must all watch this, but don't worry, we'll explain everything when you're done.'

She left the four to watch the waters of the pensieve where swirls of silver were forming from the tooth Toothiana had dropped in. Suddenly they all felt as if they were plunging forward into the dark waters of the pensieve, they clutched at each other as they fell while darkness swirled around them. As suddenly as it began, their descent stopped and the four found themselves back in Headmaster North's office, except it wasn't. For a start North and the other teachers had vanished and were replaced by a strange woman the four had never seen who was sitting at the Headmaster's desk, writing on a piece of parchment.

'Uh, hello?' Hiccup asked, waving his hand at the woman who didn't take the slightest notice.

'Don't bother Hiccup, I think we're in this woman's memory,' Rapunzel told him as a knock came at the door and the woman looked up.

'Come in,' she called and the door opened to reveal Professor Trelawney, covered in her usual tacky bangles.

'Oh, good evening Sybil,' the woman greeted cordially before returning to her parchment, 'For what do I owe the pleasure.'

'Good evening McGonagall,' Trelawney replied in her usual drawl as she sat in front of the woman, 'I have come to inform you of some important information that I believe you should be aware of, after all we have grown to a mutual understanding after our unity against Dolores…'

'The Pink Hag, yes,' McGonagall said with a smirk and a look on her face that said she already knew what was coming.

'Yes, well I thought it best for you to know that the spiritual world has drawn very close tonight and that you must be wary off…'

'Honestly, she's completely barking,' Merida said, cutting off whatever Trelawney believed McGonagall should be wary off.

'Indeed Sybil, well I'm sure I'll be just…Sybil?' McGonagall was saying in reply, stopping and leaning forward in worry as Trelawney slumped forward in her chair.

The other four looked at each other in confusion and wandered closer to the teachers to get a better view of what was going on. Suddenly Trelawney sat bolt upright, making the four jump, her eyes, which were magnified tenfold by her glasses, turning a misty grey.

'_The Dark Lord Pitch Black shall return,'_ she intoned, her voice much deeper and hoarser than before. _'He shall gather forces of great power to his side and the dark wizards of the world shall bow to their might. But that which they seek to destroy shall be their undoing. The four, born of great bloodlines, shall lead to their defeat: the True Queen, the Winter Trickster, the Sun's Child and the Beast Tamer, who shall find unity in separation but must not learn of their destiny until the age of fifteen. Together their blood shall bring forth the magic that will stop the Dark Council, magic born from that which they fail to understand. But this magic can only awaken from a sacrifice; a sacrifice of life, for one must die so the others may live._

With the last words the scene began to fade around the four and they felt themselves rushing back out from the memory and soon stood back in front of the pensieve. They all stood still, unable to speak as Trelawney's last words echoed in their heads, _for one must die so the others may live_. The teachers guided them to their seats hurriedly before they collapsed and the four sat their dumbly as the words still bounced through their heads.

'One of us has to die?' Hiccup asked eventually in horror.

'No,' North replied quickly with a certainty in his voice that made the four look up.

'Not every prophecy is fulfilled,' Bunnymund told them reassuringly, 'some of the times only parts of them come true or none of it at all.'

'What did it mean though,' Rapunzel asked desperately, '_Why_ does one of us have to die, how will that awaken some special magic?'

The teachers all looked at one another; deciding who should speak, and eventually Toothiana hovered forward.

'It's complicated Rapunzel, but we promise to tell you what we know. All Magic begins with blood; that's where your magic comes from; it's why there_ are_ wizards and witches. The four of you, however, are…unique. The magic that flows through you, your bloodline, is special. Merida, yours for instance is better known in legend. Your family are descended from ancient kings and their bloodline developed a connection to the highlands they ruled over, it became known as the King's Blood and those who had it were known as the True King, the ones born to rule.'

'Wait, you told me that it wasn't true,' Merida said accusingly to Whittler who was looking sheepish.

'I said it was a legend not that it wasn't true,' Whittler admitted. 'I couldn't tell ye this until now, when ye turned fifteen. It's what Mordu wants; as yer descended from both his family and the Dunbrochs he believes that if he kills ye in battle he'll get the King's Blood.'

'How do ye even know I have this King's Blood?'

'You drank from zhe firefalls,' North told her simply. 'Zhey say only those born with zhe King's Blood are brave enough to climb it. That's part of what zhe bloodline gives you, great courage and the drive to train and hone your battle skills.'

'So what about me?' Jack asked, 'what's so special about my blood?'

'Your family's specialisation in ice magic of course,' Tooth answered simply. 'Generations of your family have learned and invented winter spells that no one else knows; it's sort of seeped into your blood. We realised you were the Winter Trickster after you'd survived that fall into the frozen lake.'

'What's that got to do with anything?' Jack asked as the others looked at him curiously. He'd never really told them about his little accident.

'You survived it, which was proof enough for us that you possessed the right bloodline. You should have died but the magic within you reacted to the cold, it changed you so you would live. Didn't you ever wonder why your hair changed colour or why you could suddenly perform ice magic without speaking?'

'Not really, I just kind of rolled with it.'

'But what about me?' Hiccup asked uncertainly, 'I don't have any special powers like Jack.'

'You think so?' North asked, looking at Hiccup strangely. 'And yet it was you that saw past hundreds of years of hatred and ended a thousand year long war with zhe dragons. You, and only you, saw that everything we knew of zhem was wrong. _Your _power comes from your ability to make connections with magical animals, zhe Beast Tamer see. We knew you were the one when we heard of Berk's miraculous change of heart to zheir dragon brethren.'

'How did I get this magic then?' Rapunzel asked curiously, 'after all I'm muggle-born; I shouldn't have any _special _magical blood.'

'You were zhe last for us to find Rapunzel,' North told her truthfully. 'Of course your...err…old predicament didn't help. I knew you were zhe one though, I could feel it in my belly. When your father told me zhe story of how a magic flower had saved zhe life of his pregnant wife I knew you were zhe Sun's Child. Zhe flower, you see, is spoken in old stories, a magical flower given power by zhe sun that could heal any sickness or wound. I believe when it healed your mother it transferred its powers to _you, _giving you zhe bloodline of zhe sun. That's why your hair carries healing powers and it's why you are zhe fourth of the bloodlines.'

'Ok, so we have this special magic, that still doesn't explain why one of us has to die,' Merida pointed out impatiently.

'That part's more complicated,' Tooth told her steadily. 'In ancient times, before the founders of Hogwarts time, blood was used to channel magic rather than wands, after all, it responds to your specific magic best. In those old times, sacrifices were used for the strongest spells and no spell was stronger than the ones created when a person sacrificed their lives for others. Your bloodlines are especially unique because they are supposed to…resonate with one another. We theorise that if one of you sacrificed your life for the other three the resonation between your bloodlines will be affected by the power the sacrifice creates, you will all grow stronger than any wizard before has ever been.'

'That's crazy,' Hiccup said defiantly, 'How could you possibly know that for sure.'

'We didn't until four years ago,' Bunnymund answered. 'Tell me Frost, when you stupidly went out to fight Black what were you thinking?'

'I don't know,' Jack answered, 'I was angry I guess, about my dad.'

'And?'

'And…I wanted to stop him doing it again. That's right, I told myself I'd stop him from hurting my friends or die trying.'

'When Black cut your throat the resonation began to take effect,' Bunnymund told them triumphantly, 'The sacrifice you'd unknowingly made began to make you all stronger. That's why you all managed to block Black's killing curse, something _no one_ has ever done before, because your magical power had grown beyond anyone's limit. It faded immediately after Rapunzel healed you though otherwise the resonation would have lasted for longer, or become permanent, we're not really sure.'

'We didn't want to tell you zhis so soon,' North told them at the looks on their faces, 'but zhere have been some worrying reports from our sources. From what we gather Black's forces are already moving.'

'So we're going to have to fight this dark council soon,' Hiccup asked in a defeated voice, 'and one of use is going to have to die to give the others the power to survive.'

'I already told you I won't let that happen,' North said firmly, his determination radiating from him in waves. 'Not every prophecy is fulfilled you know. We've told you of zhe prophecy as it asks, but only because we thought you deserved to know, not because one of you will have to die.'

'While the Guardians still stand, we will protect you,' Toothiana told them, hovering at North's side.

'We will fight, so you won't have to,' Bunnymund continued as he moved to stand on North's other side.

'We will do all in our power ta stop Black so ye won't have ta,' Whittler added as she stood next to Tooth.

Mansnoozie said nothing as he stood to attention next to Bunnymund but a thumbs-up made from golden sand appeared above his head.

Together the Guardians stood before the four, a wall of strength and safety that would shield them from the dark fate of the prophecy with all their might. With the surety radiating from their teachers the four couldn't help but feel a little comforted, their anxieties washing away for a short while.

'It's getting late,' North noted as he looked towards a clock hanging from the wall, 'if you have no more questions I think it is time for bed.'

'I don't think any of us are going to be able ta sleep professor,' Merida told him truthfully, her words accompanied by nods from the others.

'Very well,' North said, nodding understandingly, 'you may keep each other company tonight until you are ready for sleep, you will not be punished for breaking curfew this _one _night.'

'And children,' he called after them as they headed out of his office, all of them looking at the ground, 'don't forget what we promised. I swear I will use all my power to make sure you live normal teenage lives.'

The four walked through the dark corridors of the castle without speaking; they didn't know what to say. They eventually found a place to sit on the step of the Grand Staircase and remained there for some time, letting the hours pass in a comfortable, mutual silence. When the moon had risen to its full and Hogwarts was bathed in its silvery light they all felt a tiredness seep into their eyes and knew it was time. They said goodnight and travelled to their separate dormitories, curling into their beds and allowing sleep to take away the memories of the pensieve for a few blissful hours.

* * *

**And the secret is revealed, what do you guys think? :)**

**As ever thank you all for the amazing reviews you've been sending and thanks for reading :D**


	14. The Tri Team Tournament

**The Tri Team Tournament**

The four found it surprising how quickly they adapted to the news of their potential destiny. The month of September was just so busy and full of things for them to do that the prophecy became a distant memory faster than they realised. Merida and Jack spent many of their afternoons playing quidditch with their teams; with the hosting of the Tri Team Tournament the teams had been told all house quidditch matches were cancelled this year so they were spending as much time as possible making up for it.

'Perfect,' Fred had complained on hearing the news, 'just as I get made Team Captain. I'd better get into that Tournament.'

Rapunzel and Hiccup were kept busy as well because they had to organise their growing homework load, which Jack and Merida ignored, around their other activities. Rapunzel began to spend even more time with Madam Pomfrey, learning stronger and stronger healing spells with ease much to Madam Pomfrey's approval. Hiccup on the other hand had begun spending more time in the Forbidden Forest with and without Gobber, alone except for Toothless.

Learning of the prophecy had almost been an eye opener for him in some ways. A week after hearing it he had descended to Gobber's hut and met Toothless, who ran into him at full pelt, knocking him over as he laughed.

'It's good to see you too buddy,' he laughed happily as the dragon began to lick at his face in a surprisingly cat-like way. 'Are you ready for an adventure bud?' he asked as they both calmed down, looking into the dragon's green eyes, and smiled as Toothless unfurled his wings in preparation, kneeling down so Hiccup could get into his saddle and clip his foot into its spot.

'We're heading for the Forbidden Forest,' he told Toothless as they sprang into the air and his worries about the rest of the prophecy began to fall away below him, 'I need to make a few…tests.'

For Hiccup, learning of the possibility that he or one of the others might have to sacrifice their life for each other was only part of what he'd understood that night. He'd learned he had a special power over magical creatures, if that was true then it needed to be tested and his scientific mind was already making plans for exactly how that could be done. He'd made a respectful friendship with the centaurs over the years and now he wanted to go deeper, the Forest had many mystical creatures within its boughs and he was going to find out how far the powers of the Beast Tamer extended.

As such, when October and the day of the arrival of the Beauxbaton and Durmstrang delegations came around, the four were found waiting outside their last lesson of the day, Defence Against the Dark Arts, talking animatedly as normal about how they thought the schools would arrive.

'I'm sticking with Floo powder,' Rapunzel was saying with certainty, 'the Great Hall has a large enough fireplace for an entire delegation to come through, I'm sure of it.'

'They're going ta want ta be flashier than that,' Merida dismissed with equal certainty.

'Well it won't be by dragon,' Hiccup said thoughtfully, 'Berk would have heard about it.'

'Maybe they'll just take the train,' Jack said in mock seriousness, hunching over and resting his chin in his hands as if he were a detective trying to solve a murder, much to the annoyance of the others.

'Hey Fred,' he said, ignoring the scathing looks from the three and waving nonchalantly at Fred who was walking up the corridor to them with his friend Flynn Ryder. Flynn was a couple of inches taller than Fred with a leaner body, honed from his years as a chaser. He was already growing the beginnings of a goatee, the dark stubble forming a small shadow across his chin, which made him look a year older than he actually was.

'What are ye doin' here?' Merida asked in confusion, both Fred and Flynn were in the year above and had no reason to be joining them as far as she knew.

'We've come to say hi to the guest speaker,' Fred said mysteriously as the door to the classroom opened to reveal a stranger that no one in the class had seen before but nonetheless looked strangely familiar.

'Hello Fred,' the man said cheerily at the sight of Fred, 'Come to say hi have you?'

'Hey Uncle Harry,' Fred greeted back as Flynn waved, looking more nervous than the four had ever seen before on the rare occasion they'd met him.

'What's going on?' another voice that was clearly Professor Maximus' asked. 'Why are you too blocking my class?'

'We've got a free period and we wanted to join in, after all, we found it pretty educational the last time and as a teacher you can't say no to two students willing to _learn_,' Flynn said, catching Maximus' attention and causing the teacher to shoot him a look of deepest loathing.

'Funny, I don't remember you being so eager in previous lessons,' Maximus said scathingly as he looked Flynn up and down.

In response Flynn only shrugged, raising his hands in an attempt at an innocent look, which everyone could see wasn't innocent at all. Maximus looked him up and down for a moment before rolling his eyes and opening the door to let the two sixth years in as well as the rest of the class.

'One step out of line and I'll make sure you regret it,' he called after them as the two boys sat, grinning, at a table. The rest of the class filed in and sat at their usual tables, watching the stranger with curiosity as Maximus walked to the front of the class and cleared his throat.

'Today we have a special guest teaching so the lot of you keep quiet because this'll be the only time (he looked in annoyance at Fred and Flynn) you'll have the chance to learn from Harry Potter.'

The class gasped as the realisation dawned on them while Harry Potter, the boy who lived, replaced Maximus at the front of the class. They all now realised why he looked familiar, almost everyone owned his chocolate frog card from which his face had looked out at them. He was a lanky man with untidy black hair and round glasses that sat over brilliant green eyes but of course everyone in the room, save Fred and Flynn, looked to his most renowned feature, the lightning scar etched across his forehead.

'Good afternoon class,' he greeted, seemingly ignoring their stares, 'could all of you move your desks to the side of the class please as this is going to be more of a practical lesson today.'

His words were obeyed quickly and soon the room echoed with the scraping of desks and chairs as they were dragged to one side of the room or the other. Harry then had them spread out in the room and began to tell them of the spell they were going to try and perform; the patronus charm.

'It needs the happiest memory you've got,' he told them as they began to repeat the incantation and wave their wands with nothing happening, 'let it fill you up and _then_ use the spell so it's strengthened by as much happiness as you can give.'

Fred and Flynn grinned at each other and raised their wands simultaneously, both calling out, 'Expecto Patronum!'

Two silvery lights erupted from their wands and formed into two separate animals that began to play and chase each other around the room as the class looked on in envy and wonder. Fred's was a husky dog that jumped and ran, barking around Flynn's flying magpie patronus.

'Well done you two,' Harry congratulated as he patted them both on their shoulders, 'they were only mist shields last year.'

The four looked enviously over at Fred and Flynn before returning to their own attempts. So far only Rapunzel had managed to make anything but a light silvery mist that hung immobile in the air.

'Expecto Patronum,' Jack said, waving his staff and groaning loudly when nothing happened. He wanted to show up Fred and Flynn with an even better patronus, like a dinosaur or something.

Merida was scrunching up her face in concentration as she whispered determinedly to herself, 'Think happy thoughts, happy thoughts.'

Hiccup was also repeating the spell but nothing was happening for him either. In the end he waved his wand angrily around in exasperation and said, 'Why did it have to be a charm, every other type of spell I can do but charms take me _weeks_ to learn, I could practice at something this advanced until the end of time and not get so much as a slug patronus out of it.'

'Don't give up Hiccup; imagine it, watching dementors run away from your terrifying slug, oh the horror!' Jack said, gasping in shock and horror as he wrapped an arm around the boy's shoulder and waved his arm in the general direction of the imaginary battle.

Everyone, including Hiccup, laughed at that only to be interrupted by Rapunzel yelling, 'I've got it, I've got it!'

Flying around her head was a silver bird as large as a swan with three long tail feathers streaming behind it. Everyone clapped in appreciation as they watched the silver beauty soar around the ceiling.

'Well done, the only other person I've ever known to have a phoenix patronus was Albus Dumbeldore,' Harry Potter's voice said behind them, making them all jump and then stand awkwardly, watching the most famous man alive talk to them. 'How are the rest of you doing?' he asked in genuine curiosity, apparently not seeing their looks of awe and admiration.

Merida immediately raised her wand in eagerness to impress him and, in the split second before she called out the spell, she groped in panic for a strong enough happy memory that would fuel her patronus. It was as if every happy memory she'd ever remembered had hidden behind the door, leaving her with nothing to think over. She thought desperately as her mouth began to form the words of the spell and suddenly a memory hit her, the day her father had taken a history lesson with her and had instead begun a swordfight training session. She'd been so happy at that moment just as her brothers dropped a mounted boar's head onto Fergus' own head, blinding him and allowing her to trip him with her sword.

'Expecto Patronum!'

A silver mist flew from her wand and hovered beneath Rapunzel's phoenix, who was still circling the ceiling lazily as Harry Potter and the others congratulated her.

'Good work, don't worry about it not being fully formed, it takes some people years to learn this,' Harry said before turning to Jack expectantly.

Jack pushed up his sleeves theatrically as he spun his staff around, causing a few people who were now watching the four to laugh unintentionally. He thought back to the day he'd taken his sister ice skating again after his second year, freezing the lack surface solid to ensure no one would fall in this time, that day they played as they should have done then and his sister's laughs of delight as she skated and dodged around snowballs he'd begun to throw towards her still made him smile.

'Expecto Patronum!'

A silver mist erupted out from the end of his staff and mixed with Merida's, seeming to strengthen it into an almost solid fog. He huffed in annoyance at the lack of anything cool but soon smiled again as everyone congratulated him too.

Finally it was Hiccup's turn and everyone turned to him with an expectant look. The first three of the four had all been able to make something; naturally Hiccup could master the spell alongside them. Hiccup raised his wand expectantly and called out the spell once again, his voice echoing off the stone walls of the class.

'Expecto Patronum!'

Nothing happened. 'Aw COME ON!' Hiccup cried out in exasperation as the crowd, except for the three and the teachers, laughed at him.

'Don't worry about it,' Harry told him reassuringly as the rest of the class lost interest and returned to their own attempts, 'keep practicing and I know you'll get it.'

By the end of the lesson only Rapunzel had managed to summon a fully formed patronus while a few others had been able to create semi-transparent mists like Jack and Merida, the rest, including Hiccup, hadn't been able to make a thing. The four hung back to help Maximus move the chairs and tables back, Hiccup scowling at the furniture as if it had just insulted him, so as to listen in on Fred and Harry's conversation, as they were all using the winguardiam leviosa charm to do it the excuse was pretty flimsy.

'So Harry, are you coming to watch the Tournament?' Fred asked loudly, so as the four and Flynn could hear.

'I'll be coming in to watch the tasks,' Harry replied. 'Headmaster North thinks it's a good idea for one of the judges to be the last tournament winner.'

'Although it's not exactly like I remember it happily,' he muttered darkly as an afterthought.

'Flynn and I are applying together,' Fred added proudly, hoping to cheer his uncle up.

'Really? Well don't expect me to show any favouritism,' Harry responded jokingly as he ruffled Fred's ginger hair.

'Shouldn't you lot be heading off anyway?' Maximus asked as he manoeuvred the last chair into place. 'The delegates will be arriving any minute now.'

The four looked at their watches and realised the Professor was right, it was nearly time for the arrivals and people would already be gathering in front of the grounds to watch out for the two schools. They all hurried quickly out the door and were soon followed by Flynn and Fred who yelled a hasty goodbye to a laughing Harry.

'So are you guys going to join?' Flynn asked them as they all ran down to the Grand Staircase.

'It's temptin',' Merida mused, tilting her head as she thought about it.

'I'm not,' Hiccup said firmly, 'I've heard what happened in the old Tournaments. Call me cautious by I don't want to be turned inside out and apparated over a five mile radius simultaneously.'

'It won't be that dangerous Hiccup,' Jack smiled at him as they reached the stairs, 'and if it is, I'll make sure you stay safe.'

'Uh, thanks Jack,' Hiccup replied, blushing slightly.

'Ugh, looks like we've been beaten to the punch,' Fred groaned as they looked down the stairs and saw the entire school cramming themselves through the doors to get outside. 'We're never going to get to the front that way,' he continued, slyly pulling out the old parchment Merida new as the Marauder's Map Mark II and whispering the password, 'but if we go down _there_ we'll find a secret passage that'll take us to the front of the crowd.'

'And how on Earth do ye know that?' Merida asked in a sarcastic manner.

'Trade secrets,' Fred replied in a similar tone as he tucked the map back in his robes.

They all followed Fred down the corridor he had pointed out and soon they were emerging from a hole in the wall that had formed at the touch of Fred's palm into the cold outside air. As the last of the group got out they headed off to get a good view while the hole closed itself back up, stones and mortar sliding back into place with barely a whisper.

The Hogwarts students waited for a good ten minutes before anything happened when a third year girl shrieked shrilly and pointed into the sky above the Forbidden Forest. As one the students followed her gaze and stared at a rapidly growing dot on the horizon. Soon they could make out that it was a large horse drawn carriage being driven by six horses. People began to yell and back away as they realised the sheer size of what was approaching as the carriage came in to land. The horses were easily each the size of an elephant and their hooves shook the ground as they landed while the carriage itself was many feet larger still, although in spite of its size the enormous carriage somehow managed to land so smoothly that it made no sound as it touched the grass of the grounds.

The massive door of the carriage opened and golden steps unfolded from the door to the ground. Out of it stepped one of the largest women any of the four had ever seen, explaining the size of the carriage. She was old, around eighty, her hair greyed and her face aged but she still carried herself without a stoop and walked with easy long strides. Professor North walked forward to greet her, kissing her hand without needing to bend and saying a brief greeting.

'Thank you North, it iz good to see you too,' the woman, whose name was Madame Maxim, said in return. ''As Mycroft arrived yet?'

'No you are ze first to arrive,' North informed her. 'Would you care to come inside? Your students look rather chilly.'

North had a point the others noticed as the Beauxbatons delegates emerged after their headmaster. They were all dressed in what looked like blue silk that offered no real protection against the oncoming winter chills. As they hurried past, many heads turned to watch them go, primarily men's.

'Blimey, do you think they make them all like that in France?' Fred asked while Flynn merely wolf whistled quietly.

'Fred, ye have five seconds ta remedy that statement before Rapunzel and I curse ye both,' Merida warned him as she and Rapunzel pulled out their wands, grinning.

'Oh come on, I didn't mean anything by it. Jack you know what I mean right,' Fred implored as the two women began to count slowly.

'I don't know Fred,' Jack replied cheerily, he had watched the girls go too but with a slightly disinterested look, 'I prefer people who can handle the cold. What did you think Hiccup?'

Hiccup, who hadn't watched the girls at all as he was a little too focused on someone else, gave a noncommittal shrug before laughing as Merida and Rapunzel finished their counting and charged the two helpless sixth years.

'Look at the lake!' Someone suddenly yelled out, stopping the girls actually cursing Fred and Flynn, who were laughing just as hard as Jack and Hiccup, and making everyone turn to stare down at the Black Lake which was beginning to churn and swirl unusually as something began to emerge from it. First came a long wooden pole that turned out to be a mast which was soon followed by the large hull of a ship as it rose from the dark waters. Soon the students could see movement along the deck and a stream of men dressed in furs and warm coats began to walk up to the castle, led by a man dressed in black and dark brown.

'Nicholas my old friend, how are you?' the man boomed in a deep voice as he embraced North in a strong hug.

'Very well Mycroft, I trust you had a pleasant trip?' North returned as they broke apart.

'Ah, you know how it is, I never feel better than when I am behind the wheel of that ship,'

They continued conversing as they walked into Hogwarts, the Durmstrang and Hogwarts students hurrying after them, and soon everyone was packed into the Great Hall as dinner began. The delegate students spread out among the four tables and sat among the Hogwarts students as the food appeared, the four noticed that very few of the delegates where their age. Instead they were mostly seventh years with only a few rare exceptions, clearly their headmasters weren't willing to risk the Tri Wizard Cup on someone they deemed too inexperienced.

At the end of the feast the dining tables were moved magically to the side as all the students stood up expectantly. The four gathered together and moved to the side with the rest of the students as something was wheeled into the middle of the room. It was a stone goblet mounted on a pedestal, blue flames licking at the air from within it, The Goblet of Fire.

Stepping forward, North spoke, his voice carrying over the unusually quiet students, 'As I am sure you are all excited to move along I shall make zis quick. Anyone who wishes to enter ze Tournament must place zeir name into ze Goblet of Fire, our impartial judge. It is important to note that you cannot give ze Goblet a name other than your own, zis is to ensure only participants who are willing, will enter. If you wish to have ze chance to work alongside friends who are also willing to compete you may use a piece of parchment with all your names written down, if one of you is selected zen ze others will be too. I suggest you don't enter zis competition lightly, if you are selected you cannot leave halfway through; you must stay in it to ze end. Of course, ze reward is certainly worth it, zis year we have managed to scrounge three thousand galleons for the winning team to split amongst themselves. And for any of you underage students, who are attracted by zis, please note ze other headmasters and I have drawn an age barrier around ze Goblet that will prevent anyone younger than fifteen from entering zeir name. With that I say goodnight and good luck.'

His speech over, North turned and walked out of the Hall, talking happily with the other headmasters as they left all the students to watch the glimmering fires of the Goblet.

'We have got to apply,' Jack said eagerly as he fumbled in his pocket for a scrap of parchment.

'Three thousand galleons!' Merida yelled as an image of the prize money floated in front of her.

'I'm still not sure about this,' Hiccup replied, his old nervousness sneaking through.

'Three thousand galleons!'

'Come on Hiccup, you'll be fine,' Jack returned reassuringly as he began to write their names down on the paper.

Hiccup watched Jack's face as he wrote down his own name, as well as glancing at the girls who were looking just as excited, before sighing and nodding in agreement. 'Alright, alright, I'll do it. You guys are right, it does sound worth it.'

'Three thousand galleons!'

'Why do you keep saying that Merida?' Rapunzel asked with worry.

'I've never had the chance to say three thousand galleons before,' Merida breathed back.

When all their names were written on the parchment the four stepped into the queue that had already formed in front of the Goblet. Five people ahead of them Fred and Flynn high-fived one another as they slipped the parchment carrying their own names into the fires. Finally it was the four's turn and together they all held the parchment containing their names over the Goblet and let it drop where it seemed to vanish as the fires consumed it.

'Seemed a little anti-climactic to me,' Merida murmured to them later on, 'I mean ye'd hope it would spit a bit of fire back out or something right? Just to show it had accepted the names.'

'All that matters is that we're going to get in, I just know it,' Jack said, a strange gleam lighting his eyes.

* * *

The four spent most of the next day sitting in the Great Hall and watching people as they placed their names into the Goblet. People would go to it in groups and drop their names into the stone Goblet before leaving or hanging around like the four to watch the show. Every now and again a few underage students would waltz in, believing they had just come up with an idea that would trick the ghostly age line that hung around the Goblet. The four always found it fun to watch as each would-be champion was thrown from the circle with beards that rivalled Professor North's growing from their face.

Finally dinner came and everyone once again sat at the four tables, slightly squashed together to make room for the Goblet, only speaking in murmurs as they all made furtive glances to the stone pedestal bathed in the light of the Goblet's blue flames. When dinner had finished everyone took the same positions they had the night before, the four joining together to wait for the Goblet's decision as they had when they awaited its arrival.

The three headmasters took positions around the Goblet in a ceremonial fashion and waited as they looked into the Goblet's flames while everyone else held their breath in anticipation. Suddenly the flames sprang up and flared as the Goblet spat out three charred pieces of parchment which were nimbly caught by Mycroft. He smiled triumphantly and began to read out the six names of the Durmstrang team 'Abramova, Baikov, Derevenko, Gurov, Manakov,' and ending with a loudly called, 'Dmitri Krum!'

A loud roar of approval erupted from the Durmstrang students as their team assembled with Krum, son of the famed quidditch player Victor Krum, in the middle, basking in the attention.

'Like father like son,' Rapunzel called over to the others who looked at her with curiosity, 'his dad was a champion in the last Tournament.'

Before any of them could make a patriotic reply about how, like his father, Dmitri would lose to the Hogwarts champions, the fires of the Goblet began to grow again as it spat out another piece of parchment which flew up into the hand of Madame Maxime.

Like Mycroft, Maxime called out the names of her chosen students, 'Belrose, Augustine, Janvier, Palomer, Lyon and Mercier!' As their team walked up to the front, causing several men to turn their heads and watch as they walked away, to stand beside the Durmstrang team their fellow students both applauded and cried out in annoyance and sorrow at not being chosen.

There was silence again as everyone waited for the final names to be drawn and soon the silence was filled with the crackle of flames as two final pieces of parchment flew into the air and fell into North's waiting palm.

He looked down at the paper for a moment before speaking, as if he were trying to think through a difficult problem. 'Ze Hogwarts champions are,' he bellowed, 'Merida Dunbroch, Rapunzel Solaris, Hiccup Horrendous Haddock III, Jack Frost, Fred Weasley and Flynn Ryder!'

There was a tumultuous clapping coupled with sighs of disappointment as the stunned four made their way up to the front of the Hall alongside Flynn and Fred and stood in front of the three headmasters next to the two teams who would become their competition.

As the thunderous clapping continued North raised his hands for calm before speaking, 'Your teams have been chosen; support them well through ze trials ahead. Now if ze champions will join us in ze next room we can prepare them for ze coming challenge.'

He beckoned for the three teams to follow him and they were led into a small antechamber at the side of the hall. Three benches were set in a horseshoe shape, one for each team. The four sat with Fred and Flynn at one side and waited for the judges to begin their explanation.

'Firstly a congratulations are in order,' North beamed as he looked over them, 'you have been chosen to compete in a very prestigious Tournament that I am sure shall bring you all fame and fortune, well, ze winners anyway.'

'Now for the first task,' Madame Maxime said impatiently behind North, towering over his heavy frame, 'the aim of the first task iz very simple, to test your ingenuity and reaction to the unknown. As such, we shall not tell you what it iz, _and_ you shall 'ave very little time to practice as the task iz set one week from today.'

The teams looked unsurely at one another as she said this, one week before the first task? They really weren't going to have much chance to prepare.

'There are two rules you must know,' North added as the teams turned back, 'you cannot, under any circumstances, accept help from another wizard, witch or squib, is that understood? Good. Secondly, in each of ze tasks you may use whatever tools you require; anything at all. That is all for today and I suggest you all hurry back to your fellow students, I'm sure parties are already being prepared.'

'Woo!' Flynn cheered as they entered a now nearly deserted Hall, 'I don't believe it! Three thousand galleons, that's five hundred each!'

'Don't forget the extra helping of fame North mentioned,' Jack added as the others smiled at the thought of owning five hundred galleons, 'I distinctly remember fame being mentioned.'

'Did you notice North was looking right at me when he mentioned the second rule,' Hiccup interrupted.

'Yeah, why?' Merida asked curiously.

'What do you think counts as a tool?' Hiccup asked with a sly look in his eye, 'Because if it means what I think it does, then North was telling me that I have one hell of a _tool_ waiting at Gobber's hut.'

'Good idea Hiccup,' Fred said as he pulled them all into a huddle, 'so here's the plan, let's go and enjoy our house parties tonight and then every day for the next week we spend the afternoon's practicing.'

'Bring Toothless too,' he added in a whisper as the Durmstrang students passed by.

* * *

As the Hogwarts team enjoyed their parties that night, three figures were walking along the stone pebbled beach of an island just of the coast of Iceland at the same moment. The air was chilling and dark as the three figures walked, flanked by dark shapes that twisted and whinnied in the darkness, their black sand reflecting no light and leaving the night darker than ever. The only light that illuminated the path in front of the three were the yellow lights of Nightmare's eyes and a single beam shot from the wand of Gothel.

Suddenly the second figure, cloaked in black robes that hid him almost as effectively as an Invisibility Cloak in the dark, stopped and cocked his head as if listening to a voice that the other two could not hear, which in fact he was.

'Excellent, the first phase of the plan is complete,' Pitch Black said contentedly, 'it seems your doubts were unfounded Gothel.'

'They weren't doubts, they were concerns,' Gothel replied irritably, they had been trekking across the beach for two hours and she was beginning to feel _it_ again, that terrible sense of ageing.

'**If you're not willing to take risks you'll never succeed, any child knows that witch,**' Mordu growled angrily as he paced beside the two.

'Oh, like how you took the risk of turning into an ugly pile of fur for a shot at a kingdom you still don't own,' Gothel returned scathingly which caused Mordu to snarl angrily at her.

'Enough playing you two,' Pitch scolded quietly as he looked around, 'We're here.'

They had reached the massive opening into a cave that stretched across the cliff face they had been walking along, unable to apperate as they did not know the exact location. It was easily large enough to fit Westminster Abbey into its cavernous depths and, with a nod from Pitch, the Nightmares shot forward into the cave and disappeared from sight.

'Finally,' Gothel sighed with relief as they waited, 'I don't know why we have to bother with this. Why can't we just kill the boy together?'

'Because dear Gothel, we cannot underestimate these children,' Black responded as they began to feel a deep banging below their feet, coming from something beneath the ground, 'I did to my cost the last time I encountered them, their combined power was enough to block the killing curse at eleven, I don't know how but they did it. Together they are a threat, so we must keep them separate at all costs and so we need to keep the dragon rider distracted.'

As he finished, a giant roar swept out from the opening of the cave, blowing hot, foul smelling air at the three before being followed by a monster. It was enormous, a dragon of insane size and proportions with claws as big as Mordu and sharper than steel. Around it the Nightmares swarmed and ran across its hide before disappearing into its mouth and nostrils causing it to bellow in annoyance. It flamed at them once, spitting out a tempest of black smoke and yellow flames that lit up the dark night, before all the Nightmares entered into its body and it grew still. Although the three could not see it, the creature's small eyes turned perfectly black as it stopped struggling.

'That's right,' Black said as he walked towards the last of the Red Deaths, the black sand of the Nightmares sifting across it brain and translating his words to the dragon's own thoughts, his mind becoming its mind. 'I have some information for you,' he continued as he flashed an image of Hiccup riding Toothless into the creature's mind, 'this boy is your enemy. He has killed your kind before but when the time comes, you shall kill him.'

With the image of the killer of its own kin playing across its eyes, the dragon allowed its mind to be overtaken completely by Black's magic, if he could bring it the human killer and his dragon traitor then that was all that mattered. It lifted its head and roared into the night, a roar of anger and hate as well as a command, any dragon that heard it would be the first to fall under its control, and soon, it would subjugate a dragon army for its master, Pitch Black.

* * *

**Accents, so many accents :p**

**Sorry this is so late guys, it has been one hell of a week and thank God it's over.**

**Finally we get to see Hiccup's enemy, I know some of you guys thought it would be a character from the TV series but I've only seen the movie and I also think that, as he is the one who makes bonds with animals, Hiccup's enemy should be one that subjugates them.**

**In answer to Leite Destiny's review, how I came up with this story was kind of funny. When I started writing the plot I didn't know anything about the Big Four but when I did I knew they were the perfect characters for the story, they kind of completed it :)**

**Anyway, I hope you guys are enjoying the story and have a good week :)**

**(PS Don't worry the next chapter should be uploaded quicker this time) **


	15. The First Task

**The First Task**

On the day of the First Task, lessons were to end at midday so the teams would have time to prepare for the task and the students would have time to settle down and make bets on who would get injured first. The four felt that time was going haywire, rushing away in incredibly fast jolts, so one moment they were sitting for their first lesson of the day, Potions, and the next they found themselves sitting down for lunch.

The week between their selection and the Task had been a tiring one where the four would spend the days sitting in lesson, studying for their OWLS, and then spending their free time practising alongside Fred, Flynn and Toothless near the outskirts of the Forbidden Forest. It got to the point where the six saw no one but each other outside of lessons and usually then their faces were covered in sweat, soot and grime; hardly an appealing look for any of them.

'Argh!' Merida had yelled in annoyance one evening, 'How are we supposed ta train if we don't know what the hell it is we're facin'?'

'Oh, I don't know. I'm enjoying the mind numbing, gut wrenching fear of the unknown that we're _currently_ facing so I can only imagine the fun we'll have on the day,' Hiccup replied sarcastically as he leaned on Toothless' flank, making the others laugh.

'Look, if we don't know what's in store for us then all we can do is make sure we're all able to give a good fight,' Fred said, trying to sound like a leader but in actuality sounding as irritated as Merida.

So they continued training but, as the Task had closed in, it had taken a more desperate edge; none of them knew what spells or techniques to learn so they were forced to settle with practising their best moves together in the hope that it would be enough.

As lunch finished the six saw Professor Toothiana flying over towards each of them, with everybody watching as they were gathered.

'The teams are to assemble in the grounds now…it's time to get ready.'

They left the Great Hall together, followed by whispered words of encouragement from friends and strangers alike. Toothiana herself seemed more agitated than usual as they stepped out into the cold November afternoon, although then again, her energetic flying and hovering, as well as her rapid speech, would make anyone seem agitated in the wrong light.

'Whatever you do, don't panic,' she said earnestly, 'there are wizards on hand to keep things from getting out of control…not that it will of course; I have every faith in you.'

'Thanks Professor,' Jack said confidently, although he was looking a little paler than usual.

They arrived at the edge of the Forbidden Forest and behind a clump of trees they discovered a large tent sitting in an enclosure hidden from view of the castle. Behind the tent was what looked like a large stadium that had been set up overnight, its outside walls so big that the Hogwarts team could tell it would easily contain the combined numbers of Hogwarts as well the Durmstrang and Beauxbatons students.

'You have to wait in here with the other teams until the time comes,' Toothiana told them hurriedly as she pointed to the tent, 'they'll tell you what you're facing inside. Good luck.'

Turning hurriedly away, she flew back up to the School, leaving the team standing silently outside the entrance of the tent. Without saying a word they entered hurriedly, all responding to some strange fear that the Judges wouldn't wait for them to explain the rules and then refuse to explain them twice while their opponents watched gleefully.

Inside the other teams were all pacing, sitting and slouching with similar looks of foreboding that the six were sure they also shared. The moment they entered they were followed by Harry Potter who seemingly had appeared from nowhere, in one hand he was carrying a pouch of purple velvet that seemed to bulge ominously.

'Good, you're all here,' he said happily as he surveyed the blank looks of dreaded expectation in front of him, 'so, the idea is that once the crowd's arrived I'll be handing you this bag. Each team gets to pick one of the different themes we've got prepared for you and they'll be numbered for the order you go in. Wait until your names are announced and then you can walk out.'

'How are you lot doing?' he asked in a half whisper to the Hogwarts team.

'Oh, fine Harry, I always feel like my insides are doing backflips,' Fred replied sarcastically, making Harry laugh.

In no time at all they all heard the heavy fall of hundreds upon hundreds of pairs of feet outside the flap of the tent, mingling with the excited voices that laughed and joked as their owners passed by. After what felt like mere seconds but, in reality, was over three minutes, the footfalls died down and Harry came forward with the pouch.

'Ladies first,' he said, offering the bag to the Beauxbatons team.

One of them put her hand daintily in the pouch and withdrew a tree. It was about six inches tall with dark coloured bark that contrasted greatly to the incredibly bright pink leaves that bloomed at its top. Attached to its trunk was a small card with the number two on it. The girls studied it quizzically, trying to find some secret code in the bark but finding nothing.

After the Beauxbatons group, Harry turned to the Durmstrang team and their unofficial leader Krum soon tugged out another tree, slightly taller than the Beauxbatons' and with a dark red bark topped with green leaves and a number one card hung neatly over a branch. Krum began to turn the tree this way and that in his large hands, its leaves swaying as it moved, trying to find any hidden meaning in the tree.

Finally it was the Hogwarts team's turn and it was Rapunzel that pulled out the final tree with a number four attached to it. Unlike the other two its black-grey bark was twisted and gnarled with leaves of green and silver sprouting at its top, up close they could see what appeared to be small black stones hanging in clumps from the branches. As they passed it along they all gasped as their fingers first brushed against the tree's smooth surface and discovered it was made from pure metal, its leaves made from silver and green foil, which had been moulded so deceptively that it looked like a real tree.

'As you can see,' Harry said, breaking the teams out of their intent observations, 'each tree represents the different theme your team will face. Beauxbatons has Asia, Durmstrang has South America and Hogwarts has Greece. Each of you will enter the arena, which will contain the life size counterpart to your models, and the challenge of this Task is for you to retrieve the Golden Wings that rest on the branches of each tree.'

'Seems easy enough,' Flynn said as he passed the tree from one hand to the other.

'I'm beginning to think that the danger of these Tournaments was over exaggerated,' Hiccup said in a confused tone.

'Except,' Harry added ('Oh, there it is,' Hiccup continued under his breath), 'that the tree and the Wings are guarded by the mythological creatures native to those parts of the world, you shall have to use all of your magical skill and knowledge to circumvent them and get your hands on the Wings.'

'I've got to go and join the judges,' he continued as he looked at his watch and began to walk to the exit, 'but here's one last hint. If you all hold the tree together you might get a better idea of what you're facing. We'll be calling out the first names in five minutes.'

'Is it me or did that get steadily worse by the minute,' Fred said as Harry disappeared.

'Never mind that, everyone get put a hand on the tree,' Rapunzel said eagerly as the Beauxbatons and Durmstrang teams huddled around their own trees.

Quickly the team made a circle and each grabbed on to a piece of the tree. The effect was immediate, the tree began to melt in their hands and as it did it steadily began to change colour to a golden bronze. The leaves and branches began to run down the bark in six glittering rivers that pooled into the hands of each of the team until none of the tree was left but replaced by six identical pools of gold in their palms. Before they could do anything, the six realised the pools were beginning to rise and solidify into new shapes that were first blurry globules but quickly became defined into six miniature creatures, each just smaller than Pascal. By the gasps from the other teams, similar things were happening to them.

'Wow, looks like there's at least one for each of us,' Jack said as the small bronze figure in his hand began to walk backwards and forwards across his palm.

'Does anyone want to trade for the Manticore?' Hiccup asked with a worried look into his palm where the miniature Manticore was prowling. It was a terrifying looking creature, with the body of a lion with the face of a monkey and a large scorpion tail that ended in a wickedly sharp curve that could both cut and sting. When it snarled at him he could see three rows of minute fangs sitting in its mouth.

'Do ye mind fillin' us in on what these things are Hiccup?' Merida asked as they heard the crowd begin to cheer outside, 'After all, ye're sort of the expert on magical animals.'

Blushing slightly at the compliment Hiccup began his explanation, holding up his Manticore for their observation.

'Alright, this is a Manticore. It's pretty much one of the most venomous and dangerous creatures you could face. You have to look out for its tail because that thing can do a lot of damage but that's only the most obvious thing it could kill you with. Do you see how its mane is all spiky? Well that's because it's made up from hundreds of barbs full of paralysing poison that the Manticore can shoot at you, don't let them hit you.'

Hiccup pocketed the little Manticore and turned to Jack who was holding out his hand for inspection. In it stood a creature similar to Hiccup's, it had the body and head of a lion but, in addition, it also had the head of a goat next to the lion's and its tail was in fact a writhing snake.

'That's a Chimera, it's an insane species.'

'You bet it is! Look at all those heads,' Jack said while watching his Chimera with admiration.

'No, you don't understand. Chimeras are literally insane, they're driven mad by their own existence. You see, the lion wants to eat the goat and kill the snake; the snake wants to kill the lion and the goat and the goat wants to run away from the lion and the snake. The thing is, as they're all a part of the same body, none of them can do what they want because they know they'll die so they go crazy because they have to fight their own clashing instincts every day. They're so dangerous because any head can kill you, the lion will eat you, the snake'll poison you and the goat will trample you, occasionally at the same time. The trick to fighting them is to make the heads fight for control, like scaring the goat so it tries to run away.'

'Neat,' Jack said, still impressed as he tucked the strange creature into his own pocket.

Hiccup turned to Flynn next who was playing with his little statue, letting it coil around one finger before dropping it into the other hand. It was a snake with nine heads that constantly twisted around one another, hissing silently.

'That's a Hydra,' Hiccup said simply, recognising the famed creature immediately, 'you can't cut or hex off any of its heads because two more will just grow in its place. It's pretty venomous too and its poison isn't just in its fangs either, its breath can kill if you inhale enough and its blood is really toxic so keep back from it. The trick to fighting this one is to split its attention among the heads so they're not sure what to do together.'

Flynn didn't pocket the Hydra yet, instead choosing to keep playing with it while Hiccup moved on to Fred who held another familiar looking creature, a three headed dog.

'Cerberus,' Hiccup said as he pointed simply at the mythical three-headed dog which growled back at him from Fred's palm, 'When it comes to guarding things it can't be beaten. They're completely loyal to their masters and will defend whatever they guard until death. You have to try and restrict its movements and knock it out because it just won't stop fighting otherwise.'

The Cerberus seemed unwilling to leave Fred's hand as he tried to pocket it, clinging to his fingers with tiny paws until it finally dropped down into his robe.

Merida was next, standing with her palm out to present what, at first, looked like an ordinary bull, with long horns that were almost half the length of its body, but on closer inspection was shown to be made from cogs and wheels.

'A Bronze Bull of Colchis,' Hiccup hazarded.

'You don't sound so sure,' Merida said with surprise, she'd never yet seen Hiccup unable to identify a mythical animal before.

'It's a little trickier,' he explained, 'the Bronze Bulls weren't actually animals. The wizards of Colchis forged them from bronze and enchanted them with magic to guard the Golden Fleece. They're pretty rare nowadays; the only person I know who can make one in Europe is Gobber. I suppose we have him to thank for this. They're stronger than ordinary bull's and they can also spit fire, I have no idea how.'

'Cool,' Rapunzel said as she leaned in to look at the bull, her eyes glittering with interest, 'I'd love to take one apart.'

'That's the spirit,' Jack joked as they watched Merida's Bull charge across her hand before stopping just before it fell over the edge.

Finally it was Rapunzel's turn but when Hiccup turned to her and the miniature creature in her hand, he paused, looking at the creature with greater uncertainty than the Bull.

'That just looks like an ordinary snake to me,' Hiccup said, confused as the snake coiled itself in Rapunzel's hand, apparently going to sleep, 'I don't see anything special about it, sorry Rapunzel.'

'Maybe they ran out of magical animals,' Rapunzel suggested as she held up the snake to the light for a closer look, 'So what's our plan then?'

All eyes turned to Merida and Fred who had both been thinking the team's options through as Hiccup described the dangers of the creatures they would have to face.

'Hiccup?' Merida asked thoughtfully as the Beauxbatons team was called out to screams and cheers from the crowd, 'Have ye made sure our old friend is ready to be called if we need him?'

Hiccup nodded, he had gone out before lunch to sneakily move Toothless to a safe spot at the edge of the forest and if Hiccup called, he would come.

'And ye know the extra trainin' ye told us you were doin' in the Forbidden Forest?'

Hiccup nodded again, he'd told the three of his and Toothless' excursions into the Forest as well as his experimentation with his newly learned powers.

'Great, so how good have ye got?'

* * *

After Merida had explained the plan, the Hogwarts team had nothing to do but wait for their names to be called out. They sat listening to the magically enhanced voice of Daniel Finnegan, the fifth and final judge, commentating on the Beauxbatons team's efforts, 'Clever move, pity it backfired.'

After half an hour the sounds of cheers reached a thunderous note again that clearly stated the Beauxbatons team had got their Wings, confirmed five minutes later when the Durmstrang team were called out with Krum swaggering ahead.

Finally, after what seemed like an age filled with gasps and screams, the Hogwarts team heard their names called out. They got up together and, sticking close to one another, they walked through the tent's exit with their wands drawn to emerge into a short corridor that would take them under the seats and right into the arena.

'And here they come ladies and gentleman,' Finnegan cried out as they stepped into the daylight to loud roars of approval from the Hogwarts students. They could see people standing and waving flags with the Hogwarts crest all along the stadium. Jack's sister was among them and was cheering and waving harder than anyone while Pascal, who Rapunzel had entrusted to Mia for the Task, jumped excitedly up and down on her shoulder.

In front of them the circular arena was split into three rings. The olive tree, an identical match to the statue Merida had pulled out, stood in the central ring of soft earth dotted with smooth rocks, right in the middle of the arena. They could all see the glint of gold from the Wings that rested on one of the tree's branches. The middle ring was made from flat stone raised slightly above the outer ring; on it they could see the giant form of the Cerberus who growled at the sight of them but didn't leave his post, next to him stood the motionless Bull of Colchis. The outer ring, the one they would enter first, looked like a quarry; it was filled with large rocks that formed small pathways and hidden alcoves, the six could only assume the rest of their obstacles were hiding within this stone labyrinth.

Right on cue, three large shapes sprang from the rocks and hurtled towards them. The Manticore, its tail poised and ready, was attacking from the left, jumping across the rocks rather than beneath them, similarly the Chimera was coming from the middle and the Hydra was twisting between the enclosed paths under the rocks from the right.

'Jack, Fred!' Merida called out automatically, although it wasn't necessary as the two boys had already reached into their pockets and thrown the contents at their feet. Instantly a dark cloud swallowed them and confused the animals forcing them to stop and peer into the darkness cautiously, unsure what to make of it.

'Interesting move from the Hogwarts team, using Instant Darkness Powder to conceal themselves; but they can't hide in there forever,' Finnegan told the cheering fans exuberantly.

As if goaded by his words the team suddenly sprang out of the cloud, but not together. Merida and Fred charged the Chimera, shooting stunning spells at it and causing the creature to bellow in anger before lunging at Merida, who spun backwards in mid-air to dodge its claws by centimetres. Meanwhile, Jack, Rapunzel and Flynn sprang out at the Hydra, forcing the serpent to focus two heads per enemy and split its attention. They all ran this way and that to prevent it from trying to target them one at a time, keeping the snakes distracted with irritating spells as they lunged and tried to strike, some of their heads knocking into one another as they went for two different students. Hiccup faced the Manticore alone.

'What's this? They've left only _one_ member to fight the Manticore!' Finnegan yelled in genuine terror while the crowd gasped in horror as Hiccup barely avoided the Manticore's sting, not yet firing a spell of his own, 'Somebody, prepare the medics!'

Suddenly there was a loud screeching sound that forced many members of the crowd to clap their hands over their ears and Gobber, sitting in the teacher's seats, to look up in alarm. 'Night Fury!' He called out as he saw the sleek black shape jump into the arena, shooting a ball of fire at the Manticore, making it stumble back and scream with the angry sound of a baboon.

'Is that a dragon?' Finnegan's voice asked, now sounding as if he was about to break down with the excitement.

Oblivious to the crowd's mixed sounds of surprise and disbelief, Hiccup ran to Toothless' side and together they faced the Manticore which hung back warily, baring its fangs in warning. Hiccup took a step forward to the monster as he tucked his wand into his pocket and removed his horned helmet, placing it on a nearby rock.

'I'm not going to hurt you,' he said softly to the Manticore which looked mildly startled at the sight of a human approaching it without fear or, apparently, the desire to harm. It growled and began to spring at him but Toothless was suddenly by his side again, baring its retractable fangs at the Manticore in a very clear warning which made the Manticore hold back. The human and dragon kept walking towards it calmly and the Manticore felt a strange pang of familiarity to the human, something it had never felt for any creature, human or otherwise. Hiccup held out his hand to the Manticore, which growled softly for a moment again before subsiding as it saw no threat come from the boy. Hiccup stopped close to the Manticore so his hand was only a few inches away from the creature's strange face. There was a near silent pause as the crowd and Finnegan held their breath and then the Manticore shifted forward and allowed the human's hand to stroke its head and spiky mane.

'I don't believe it,' Finnegan said so softly that, even with the power of the spell sonorous, the crowd could barely hear him.

The moment ended and the human and Manticore parted, although now the Manticore sat on its haunches, completely at ease with the human. Toothless picked up Hiccup's helmet in his mouth and pressed it firmly onto his head again, now slightly wet from dragon saliva. The others were still trying to subdue their animals as the team had suspected.

* * *

'_How many of these things do you think you can get onto our side?' Merida had asked earlier in the tent._

'_Not the Cerberus,' Hiccup had answered without doubt, 'it'll be too loyal to its master for me to do anything. The Chimera will be too unstable to listen to me, I think, and the Bronze Bull isn't an actual animal so that would be a no. Maybe I could get the Manticore – I'd need Toothless with me to keep it in check though – and then maybe the Hydra but I'm less sure about that one.'_

'_Great, then do what you can with the Manticore then help out the rest of us.'_

* * *

'Are you ready?' Hiccup asked Toothless and the Manticore. In reply Toothless knelt down to allow Hiccup to settle in his saddle while the Manticore revealed its fangs in what Hiccup was sure was a smile. As one they turned to face the other fights that were going on. Farthest from them Rapunzel and Flynn were still battling the Hydra which was growing more and more furious as the two scurried around it, dodging their stunning spells and trying to strike both at once.

Jack had joined Fred and Merida at some point as the Chimera had proved to be as difficult an opponent as Hiccup had predicted. It was never clear who it was going after as each head seemed to want to move in another direction, making its lunges and attacks unpredictable while also being surprisingly fast when the three heads did choose a single target.

Hiccup decided it would be best to take this one out first as it was closest, he urged Toothless forward and they rocketed into the sky together while the Manticore rushed across the stones in a blur towards the Chimera. Hiccup and Toothless rose vertically into the air before diving, with Toothless making the same screeching sound he had made on his entrance before shooting a burning fireball to the side of the Chimera at the same time the Manticore shook its mane and sent several sharp barbs in the same direction.

The Chimera was knocked on its side with the force of the flame, five singed barbs sticking into its flank. It rose again, almost immediately, and made once again for Merida, only this time the side where the barbs had stuck seemed to be moving slower.

'Did Haddock just tame that Manticore?' Finnegan screamed in excitement.

'Stupefy!' Merida cried as the Chimera came at her, pushing it back and nearly knocking it down again. However, the Chimera was still strong enough to keep going and flung itself towards Merida who rolled out of its way, there wasn't any need though.

The Manticore had caught up with its barbs and met the Chimera in mid-pounce. Dust and pebbles were flung into the sky as the two creatures fought, grappling with tooth, claw and tail. The Chimera glanced at the Manticore's side with a blow so heavy the entire stadium heard the loud thud, but the Manticore was clearly not fazed as the next minute it had flung itself at the Chimera's weaker side, the goat head. The head cried out in panic and sent the Chimera into a confused state as the lion and the snake were forced to subdue the goat with their own will while the Manticore dug into to its flank with three sets of sharp teeth.

Suddenly Rapunzel cried over to them, 'We need back-up over here!'

She was now facing the Hydra alone, the others saw, and Flynn was nowhere in sight. The next second they realized where he was, in the passages between the rocks, having fallen through when the Hydra had got a lucky shot at the hand he was now clutching in pain, blood and green fluid flowing down his arm. Rapunzel was now trying to keep the Hydra away from Flynn on her own.

'It looks like we have a man down,' Finnegan's voice interjected, 'the Hogwarts team is going to have to clear the outer ring soon to let the medics in, losing points for the injury, or they're going to lose all of them if they leave it too long and force Ministry employees to intervene.'

'Incarcerous!' Rapunzel cried and ropes sprang from her wand and snagged around the many heads of the Hydra, tying them together with heavy knots that seemed unbreakable. However, the Hydra spat in anger at the ropes which soon began to smoke and break apart at the touch of whatever fluid the snake had spit and soon it was free again, but Rapunzel was ready.

She cried out more spells and the Hydra was pelted with small rocks that lifted from the ground and hurled themselves at it, the next second the rocks transformed into a flock of yellow birds that flew around the Hydra's many heads, pecking at them and giving her some breathing room to prepare her next litany of spells.

'Go Hiccup,' Fred yelled to him as the Chimera and Manticore split apart.

'Yeah, we can handle it from here,' Jack agreed as he readied his staff.

Hiccup nodded in acknowledgment before calling down to the Manticore who looked up to him before turning from the Chimera without a backwards glance to follow the shadow of Toothless towards the Hydra. Jack plunged his staff at the ground as the Chimera tried to follow, creating a thin layer of ice along the tops of the rocks in front of the Chimera and causing it to stumble and turn back to him, Merida and Fred.

As they neared the Hydra Hiccup called down to Rapunzel, 'We'll take it from here, go take care of Flynn. Draco incendio disseptum!' He called out the spell while Toothless spat out a bolt of fire, rather than explode on contact as the flame normally did it instead struck the ground and formed a circle of purplish flames around the Hydra and Manticore that rose to ten feet high. Rapunzel, taking it as her cue, dived into the crevice after Flynn while Hiccup and Toothless landed and began to repeat the process they'd made earlier, except now with the help of the Manticore as well to keep the Hydra from striking.

Flynn's face was ash pale as he clung on to his bleeding hand when Rapunzel kneeled next to him. 'Did Pomfrey ever teach you…any spells for this?' He asked through gritted teeth, half hopeful she would say yes.

'No,' Rapunzel answered simply as she tucked her wand into her robe.

'Oh well…better get ready…to lose those points. Hey…what are you doing?'

Rapunzel had tugged at the end of her braid after looking up and around, luckily the stones above and around them seemed to shield them from the view of the crowd.

'Just don't freak out okay,' she said as she wrapped her hair around the puncture marks on his hand, making him wince and her give an apologetic 'Sorry,' before bowing her head and beginning to sing.

The stones not only shielded her actions from view but also helped dampen her voice from the outside world, so only Hiccup was close enough to hear snippets of the song he remembered well from four years ago as he placed his hand on one of the Hydra's willing heads.

_Flower gleam and glow,_

The other heads of the Hydra began to vie for Hiccup's hands as the same bond he had made with Toothless, the Manticore and many other creatures of the Forbidden Forest began to take hold.

_Make the clocks reverse,_

Jack shot sharp ice shards at the Chimera which dodged around them, Merida jumped from Jack's shoulder as she leapt into the air and fired the patrificus totalus spell at it, taking the Chimera by surprise and hitting it in the spot between the lion and goat, freezing it completely. Fred then finished the combo by shooting out a golden light that hit the Chimera squarely between the eyes of the lion, which closed sleepily along with those of the snake and the goat. Soon the Chimera was sleeping fitfully while standing up, the petrifying curse not yet losing its effect.

'Mansnoozie taught me that,' Fred commented as he waved up to the short man who was standing under two rapidly clapping golden hands.

_Save what has been lost, _

Rapunzel hadn't been entirely correct when she'd believed that she and Flynn were out of site of the crowd. As her song drew to a close, Professor North noticed a golden light near the Hydra that didn't come from the flames surrounding it, which Hiccup was putting out, and stiffened ever so slightly as he recognised the spell.

_Bring back what once was mine,_

_What once was mine._

Her spell ended, Rapunzel removed her lock of hair to reveal an undamaged, if a little bloody, hand.

'Please don't freak out,' she hurriedly cried, stopping Flynn with his mouth open in a gape of terror as he looked at his hand, ensuring he only screamed a quiet choke rather than a full blown yell that would attract too much attention.

'Oh I'm not freaking out. Are you freaking out? I'm just very interested in your hair and the magical qualities it possesses. How long has it been doing that exactly?' Flynn said quickly in a strained voice that he was trying to make sound nonchalant.

She smiled at him kindly, 'For as long as I can remember, listen I'll tell you later but right now we've got to finish this task.'

'Oh, right, we're still in the middle of something,' Flynn mumbled as Rapunzel helped pull him out from under the stones to the amazement of the crowd and Finnegan.

'My god. When did Ryder get healed? Did you see the medics go to him? They didn't? Then how the? Really? Well this really is one for the record books ladies and gentlemen because I believe Flynn Ryder's wound has been cured by Rapunzel Solaris who, I am told, has been working for the Hogwarts nurse for nearly five years now. That should save the Hogwarts team some points.'

The Hogwarts team gathered together again, with the addition of Toothless, the Manticore and the Hydra, checking each other for any injuries in worry and to discuss their next move.

'Okay, we've done pretty well so far,' Merida said, 'Good idea with the Instant Darkness Powder Jack.'

It was the perfect item to use in the situation. The team needed to see what they would be fighting first to make their last minute decisions on who would face what and the Powder had provided the perfect cover for whispered orders from Merida and Fred.

'So, I think we stick with the plan for the next two,' Fred continued, motioning to the two monsters left as the team began to head for the second ring.

The Cerberus growled as they neared, raising its gigantic hackles and baring massive teeth while the Bull still stood motionless. Nodding to one another the team split again with Jack, Merida and Hiccup in one group and Rapunzel, Fred and Flynn in the other. They began to run and split off, Jack's group running to the Bull and Rapunzel's to the Cerberus.

The minute the group's feet touched the flat stone of the second ring the Bronze Bull came to life, fire flaring behind its eyes and gears whirring as it lowered its head and charged at Hiccup and Toothless who rose into the air just above its sharp horns and began to circle around to attack it from the rear while Merida and Jack began to cast spells at its metal flanks. The Cerberus, meanwhile, was being attacked from all sides by Rapunzel's magically thrown stones while Fred and Flynn added their own stunning spells to hers and the Manticore and Hydra, instructed by Hiccup to join Rapunzel's group, shot paralyzing barbs at its side and wrapped around its legs and neck.

The Bronze Bull opened its mouth suddenly and shot blistering hot fire at Jack who twirled his staff and created a thin mist of icy air that seemed too fragile to withstand the Bull's flames. It did, however, a massive plume of steam rising into the air as the shield and flames met.

'Merida!' Jack called as he swung his staff in a downward stroke.

'On it!' Merida called back, already running forward as Jack's staff began to rise up. Underneath her feet a block of ice began to rise with the staff, tilting slightly toward the Bull. Merida bent her knees as she felt it begin to rise faster and, as the block stopped suddenly, she added its momentum to her own as she pushed down and jumped.

'Reducto!' She cried as she rose above the Bull's head, pointing her wand to the part between its head and shoulders. Her spell shot forward at the same time the Bull twisted away, blasting off a huge chunk of its shoulder instead, damaging but not destroying it.

'Damn!' She yelled as she began to fall right on to the Bull. Suddenly a screeching to her right told her Hiccup and Toothless were coming, confirmed when the dragon's fireball hit the opening Merida had just made and blew what was left of the Bull apart. A second later Merida was caught in the talons of Toothless who looked down at her and gave a gummy smile which she returned.

'Now that's what I call a combo!' Finnegan's voice rang out as Toothless flew Merida back to the ground.

The Cerberus was doing no better; with the combined efforts of the Manticore and the Hydra slowing it down, Rapunzel had quickly trapped it by turning the stone beneath its paws into something like sticky quicksand and Fred and Flynn had combined the same sleeping spell Fred had used on the Chimera, sending the Cerberus immediately into a sleep so deep that it wouldn't wake from it for several hours.

'Is it me…or is this getting easier?' Rapunzel panted as the joined together again.

'Tell me about it,' Flynn answered, 'I mean, only one near lethal accident in the whole thing.'

'So, who's goin' ta do the honours?' Merida asked as she headed for the tree and the Golden Wings nestled in its branches.

'I think it'll be me,' Jack said impishly as he flew on the winds to climb the tree before Merida. In mid-air he reached out for the glittering wings, only now could he see they were easily twice as long as his own arm span.

Something slammed into him and threw him across the arena until he hit the wall at its end where he slumped down, barely conscious. One of the smooth rocks that decorated the earth around the tree had come to life and swung out at Jack, but not a rock, a tail. The ground around the tree began to shake and shudder as what the team had presumed to be rocks began to writhe, revealing a giant snake, far larger than any of the animals the team had fought so far, coiled protectively around the tree.

'Jack!' Hiccup yelled before turning angrily on the snake and throwing flames at it with his wand, joined by Toothless who added his own and the Manticore and Hydra who, after sensing his anger, attacked the giant snake without hesitation.

While the others began to fight the serpent alongside Hiccup, Rapunzel ran to Jack who was beginning to sit up. 'Hold still,' she ordered as she waved her wand over his body, uttering a quick enchantment to detect any damage it had sustained, 'you've got a small concussion and a sprained leg but I can fix them.'

'What was that thing?' Jack asked groggily as Rapunzel began her work.

'I have no idea, but by the looks of it, it's tougher than everything else we've gone up against.'

Hiccup and Toothless had risen into the air again and were circling above the snake, shooting flames down at its head while it hissed and struck out at them. The others had joined the Manticore and Hydra on the ground where they were doing their best to restrain and stun it, but to little effect. Its tail thrashed out and Merida only just managed to jump in time for it to pass under her. Fred and Flynn meanwhile had resorted to using Mansnoozie's sleeping charm which was having no effect on the snake no matter how many times they shot it.

'It's no use,' Fred said as Merida joined them, 'it's going to need a much stronger sleeping spell to knock that thing out and we just don't know any.'

'The only chance we have is to grab the Wings and retreat while we can,' Merida suggested as Hiccup combined more fire spells with Toothless, surrounding the upper half of the snake in a flaming vortex which was soon shaken off. 'Hiccup's got it distracted; this'll be our only shot.'

'Only one problem,' Flynn reminded her, 'how are any of us going to get to the tree? We can't exactly climb over the snake.'

'That's why you've got me,' Jack said as he limped over to them with Rapunzel next to him. 'I can float one of you over on the wind to grab them, I'd do it myself but Rapunzel says she'll hex me if I try.'

'Use me,' Flynn said immediately, 'I was a pretty good thief back in the day.'

'You were a thief?' Rapunzel asked incredulously while the Manticore was thrown off the snake's side by a particularly violent twist.

'Talk about it later. Jack, throw him now. Rapunzel, cover him,' Merida interjected quickly; Hiccup and the animals weren't going to last much longer at this rate.

Nodding his consent, Flynn readied himself but, even prepared, he shivered as the cold winds blew around him and hurled him forward towards the tree and the thrashing snake which was being restrained by large roots sprouting from the same ground it lay in, the olive tree it was guarding turning against it at the will of Rapunzel. Concussed or not, Jack's aim was true and Flynn landed perfectly on the tree, grabbing the Wings to roars of approval from the crowd that he could barely hear over the battle between the snake and Hiccup.

'Hiccup, grab Flynn!' Jack yelled and Flynn saw the dark shape of Toothless zooming towards him with the head of the giant serpent behind him, preparing to strike. Toothless grabbed Flynn in his front talons, not slowing down as he did, slipping from the grasp of the serpent whose mouth snapped closed inched behind his tail.

As soon as Hiccup and Flynn joined the main group, accompanied by the Manticore and Hydra, who had disentangled themselves from the snake, the snake twisted after them but was stopped by a massive silver dome that sprang above the entire inner circle, trapping it within where it raged against the barrier. Ministry official hurried forwards to subdue the animals and suddenly it was as if the volume had been turned up for the team.

The crowd was going wild, cheering at an ear splitting level, even the Beauxbatons and Durmstrang students were cheering for them. Although the team didn't know it, their performance had easily been the most spectacular to watch and their audience were giving them their due credit.

'Well done, that was truly amazing,' Toothiana said as she joined them from above, smiling so hard it looked as if the top of her head would fall off, 'all of you report to the healing tent immediately and you can return when the judges decide your results.'

Smiling and waving at their fans the team walked and stumbled towards the healing tent and entered it together to be greeted by a scowling Pomfrey.

'Chimeras!' She cried angrily, causing the team to flinch back, 'Manticore's and all other types of murderous monster! Honestly, I wonder if they even bother to think of your safety when they come up with these fetid tasks and…what are those _things_ doing in here?'

Hiccup had dismounted from Toothless and walked to the tent next to the Night Fury but had also been followed by the Manticore and Hydra who seemingly wished to stay with him for as long as possible.

'Sorry Miss,' Hiccup said apologetically as all three animals nuzzled into him, 'they're sort of with me.'

Sniffing disapprovingly she told them all to sit down and examined each one in turn, as it turned out the team had survived with only minor scratches and bruises with the exception of Jack who was force-fed a small potion to heal the last traces of his sprain and concussion.

The other teams had not fared as well, in several beds along the tent various members of each team sat with bandages dressed along parts of their bodies. They would make a full recovery within the hour; Pomfrey had assured Rapunzel when she was asked, nothing seriously major, just a few bigger burns and scrapes than what the Hogwarts team had received.

When the examination was finished she let them return outside to get their results. The team stood in a straight line, made slightly bumpier by the presence of the animals, in front of the judge's podium. First came Professor North who pointed his wand to produce a silver ribbon that formed into an eight, causing cheers from the crowd. Then it was Maxime, seven. After that Mycroft gave a booed five. Harry gave them an eight but it was Finnegan that gave them the best mark, ten. In total, they had enough points to draw with Beauxbatons in first place.

'What's Finnegan playing at?' Hiccup whispered to Jack as the crowd cheered, 'don't we lose marks if we get serious injuries.'

'I think he only cares about how good a show we gave,' Jack smiled back cheerily.

As the crowd's cheering rose to a crescendo, the Hogwarts team each took hold of the Golden wings and raised them for all to see, victorious in their first task.

* * *

**Dear God, this was a long chapter.**

**And I know, I know, the First Task is very similar to Harry's in the actual series, I try to think of it as inspiration rather than my lack of imagination.**

**Anyway, I hope you guys enjoyed the chapter, even if it was a bit longer (I'm willing to bet many galleons that you are both going to love and hate the **_**next**_** chapter :D)**

**Until then, thank you for the amazing reviews and have a great day :)**


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